Unexpected Things
by Persephone-The-Analyst
Summary: What if Tsu'tey hadn't died? How would he react to seeing Jake's broken 'sky person' form along with Neytiri for the first time. What if when Jake and Neytiri became a mated pair Tsu'tey wasn't jealous of the situation because Neytiri had been taken away, but if Jake had? And what of this new threat that lurks on the horizon Eywa has tried to warn Tsu'tey about?
1. Realizations

_**My Avatar (James Cameron) Fanfiction**_

_**Pairing: **__Jake Sully x Tsu'tey_

_**Summary: **__What if Tsu'tey hadn't died? How would Tsu'tey react to seeing Jake's broken sky person form along with Neytiri, if they encountered the real him without any of them realizing it at Hell's Gate? What if when Jake and Neytiri became a mated pair Tsu'tey wasn't jealous of the situation because Neytiri had been taken away, but if Jake had? These are just a few themes that you'll see in this fanfiction. _

_**Author's Note: **__I do not own any of these characters, that pleasure belongs to James Cameron. I also don't normally ship this pairing because I love Jake and Neytiri, but I'll admit that I find this pairing enjoyable in fanfictions and I have to admit that I was bummed by the lack of Jake/Tsu'tey fics that were out there, so I figured that I'd just add my own to the fray! I hope you enjoy it, been a while since I've written anything on here!_

_**Grammar Notes: **_

"English speech" (normal)

"_Na'vi speech" (Italics)_

'_thoughts' _

_**Chapter 1 **_

Jake always thought that Tsu'tey hated him… that he'd hated him the moment he set foot at the Hometree. But boy was he wrong… the only problem was that Jake himself didn't know how wrong he was. He was blind to the attention that the other male would give him, well maybe he noticed it, but he didn't know why he was getting it. Neytiri however, was able to see it clearly. She knew that her once promised mate held a deep desire for her current mate, and she felt bad for him… not only had to she gone ahead and mated with Jakesully, because of how she felt for him, and wounded Tsu'tey's pride; but she also took away the one that Tsu'tey cared for as well, even if the other Na'vi wouldn't admit his feelings out loud. It was one of these days that Tsu'tey was sitting and moping about that Neytiri decided to approach him about the subject.

Tsu'tey sighed deeply and then started when he heard the soothing voice behind him. _"Tsu'tey… what is wrong? You look lost in thought."_ It was Neytiri… it appeared that nothing was lost on that woman.

Tsu'tey sighed again, _"It's nothing Neytiri… please leave me alone."_ He did just want to be left alone with his thoughts, but Neytiri sat down beside him, ignoring his request.

_"I can't, not when I see you like this. We may not be mated, but you are still very important to me. I want to know what is bothering you…" _

Tsu'tey himself wasn't sure what was wrong with him, how in Eywa was he supposed to tell Neytiri what was wrong? _"I don't know what's wrong. I just know that something hasn't been… right… since Jaksully came here. "_ He glanced at her, _"Now he's betrayed us to the sky people and I'm saddened. "_

_"I too am saddened, but I don't feel that he is a bad person. I know I was harsh with him back at the Hometree, and told him never to return… but now that I think about it, I know it was a mistake."_ Neytiri looked down at the ground. _"When the sky people fight, do you think that Jake will fight with them, now that he thinks we've rejected him?"_

Frowning, Tsu'tey placed his hand on top of Neytiri's, _"I hope not."_ Neytiri looked up at him with a sad, yet hopeful expression. _"I was harsh to him as well. I'm sure that he feels I wish death upon him, and at first so did I… but now I'm thinking that I didn't hate him as much as both of us thought…"_ Now they were getting to the root of what was bothering Tsu'tey. He knew that he had been upset and jealous when Neytiri and Jakesully had mated, but now he was starting to suspect that it wasn't because Neytiri was lost to him, but because 'the demon' was. He just couldn't wrap his mind around the idea, and it wasn't because they were both males. It wasn't unheard of for two male Na'vi to become mated, it was true that the mating couldn't produce young ones, but they were recognized by the people as an actual mated pair. He just couldn't figure out why he would have these feelings about a Sky person.

_"I'm truly am sorry Tsu'tey."_

Her words surprised him, "_Sorry? Sorry for what Neytiri?" _He couldn't quite figure out what she would be sorry for. Was it possible that she knew his thoughts better than he thought… or perhaps knew what they meant even when he hadn't? _"Do you know what confuses me?"_

_"Yes, I've known for some time now… and for that I am sorry." _He looked at her, stunned, as they words just came rushing out. _"I mated with Jakesully, knowing how you felt about him, even if you didn't know it yourself. Tsu'tey I've known you since we were young ones… you have always walked around paying attention to your people in the way that was required of you, but when I brought Jake to us… something changed. I've seen you worried about a threat to the people before, but this was different… you would tease him and laugh at him, and at first I thought that you were just behind childish, but as it went on I noticed that you seemed to enjoy that reactions you would get from him. And yes, they were pretty amusing." _He smiled remembering some of those reactions.

_"It always made me curious why he would seem to get so upset by some of the jokes I would make," _he laughed.

Neytiri smiled, lost in memories. _"Yes it was odd, but you remember what Grace taught us when we went to her school? That sky people would take things the way they weren't meant to be taken? She said sometimes things would hit too close to home. It might just have something to do with something that has been said to him by other sky people… and then when he came here he had things said to him here that made him feel the same way." _

_ "Are you telling me you actually paid attention to what that sky person was teaching us? I usually ignored her, I didn't want to learn about the demons." _

Neytiri chuckled, _"I found some of her stories interesting. Their planet didn't seem that different from ours except that our air is a little more 'toxic' than theirs so they have to use those funny little things they put over their faces to breathe. But she would tell us that at one time they had people there that lived off of the lands and respected nature and their mother like we do… but that was before the machines came." _

Tsu'tey thought that it sounded vaguely familiar. He just couldn't wrap his mind around how the sky people could harm their world. Nature was beautiful, why would anyone want to destroy it? At first he had thought Jakesully was just like the rest of his people, but overtime while he watched Neytiri teaching him, he realized that this one that called himself a warrior was really quite gentle. At first didn't seem bothered by the guns or the machines, but after a while he appeared to resent the machines just like the rest of the Omaticaya did. He had truly become one of the people in spirit. But then he had come back to them after mating with Neytiri and Tsu'tey had gotten angry and attacked him. He understood now that he wasn't angry for the reasons that Jakesully thought he was, but that he was hurt because he lost the man that he'd come to care for. He felt Neytiri place a hand on his shoulder.

_"It is time for prayer, let us pray that Ma Jake comes back to us, and we don't have to face him in the battle to come, yes?" _

_"Yes."_

* * *

The prayer was interrupted however when said warrior appeared flying in on the great Toruk, surprising the people as well as Tsu'tey and Neytiri. They both knew that Jakesully was strong and brave, but this surpassed even their expectations. Tsu'tey took pride in telling him that he would ride with him, and was pleased with the genuine smile that graced Jakesully's features, perhaps there could at least be a friendship between them instead of a void, and Tsu'tey would settle for that if it meant that he got to have Jakesully with him.

They rode out and gathered other Na'vi clans and he watched as Jakesully oozed confidence and power, he knew that the sky people had weapons that were superior to theirs, but he had assured the people that it was their pride and their love for their home that would win the battle for them. Jakesully had been a force to be reckoned with before, but now he seemed even more so.

He and Neytiri often exchanged knowing glances with each other, both proud of the other warrior. They were both happy that they didn't have to fight against him, they were happier though that he had come back to them. Tsu'tey also had felt happiness whenever the other would address him as 'brother' even if he could never smile the way that Neytiri would at him, it wasn't expected of him as it was of her.

Mo'at, who apparently was as hard to deceive as her daughter, came up and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder whenever he would see Neytiri off with Jakesully sharing a moment. He came to rely on Mo'at for those touches, though over time he needed them less and less as he truly became happy that Jakesully had someone like Neytiri that made him happy in these times.

During the battle Jakesully had given Neytiri, himself, and two sky people named Norm and Trudy, some mechanical devices that allowed them to communicate during the fight. At first he was unsure about using these machines, but the first time he heard Jakesully's voice in his ear through one, he quickly swept any skepticism he had aside. He was glad he had, because they came in handy. When he had been shot at and flung from the hanger of one of the sky person aircrafts, he had called for help and Jakesully had come and caught him on the back of Toruk. He watched in awe as the other would leap off and run across the smooth surface with one of those guns and take the big machine down with little tiny 'bombs', at least that was what he thought they were called, and then leap back off and onto his mount unharmed. If he had been unsure of how much of a warrior Jakesully had been before, he wasn't anymore… it was obvious how much skill he had in battle, he must be strong in his sky person body as well. He felt his heart stop when Jake leapt up onto the machine carrying the leader of the sky people, and watched as the man had come up out of the aircraft and shot at Jakesully causing him to fling off balance, and fly off the ship to the ground before as the thing exploded. Toruk had flown them far away when the explosion happened, they couldn't have gotten to him in time to help. Tsu'tey had prayed silently to Eywa for his safety, and then he heard Jakesully in his ear again, telling him to find Neytiri… so he did.

Neytiri and Tsu'tey had ridden through the forest on the back of a palulukan (Thanator) towards the sound of the battle still raging in the forest, when they heard a scream of anger from the one they both knew to be Jakesully. The scene they arrived on was horrible… Jakesully was pinned under a giant man in a machine that he had called Quaritch. "You think you're one of them?" The man yelled, causing Jakesully to hiss in return, "time to wake up!" Quaritch got off of him and started heading to a big metal box a little ways away, when the other male jumped onto his back and stabbed his knife around inside the machine. After a while the machine, and the man inside, crumpled to the ground never to move again, and Jakesully staggered around and saw them just as they arrived.

Neytiri ran up to him, gathered him in her arms, and checked him over for any serious injuries… which thankfully, Tsu'tey could see none of. He walked over and placed a hand on the others shoulder, "You did well… brother." Jakesully smiled up at him and nodded.

"Not so bad yourself either," he joked. "Let's get going and make sure everyone else is alright." With that they climbed onto the back of the palulukan and rode off with Jakesully sitting between Neytiri and Tsu'tey. After a while though, Jakesully said he was feeling slightly sick, that the forest was getting blurry… then his eyes widened as he seemed to realize something he couldn't believe he hadn't noticed before. Quickly, he pressed the device by his neck and began shouting, "Norm… Norm, do you read me?"

"Yeah, Jake what's wrong?" came the static response, "are you injured?"

"Not in this body, but I'm fading fast… Norm are you anywhere near the uplink site?" Jakesully shouted back, starting to get frantic, which worried Tsu'tey… he had no idea what an 'uplink site' was.

"Yeah, It's just through the trees from where I… holy shit! Jake this isn't good… someone's broken one of the windows!" This Norm was starting to sound just as worried, as they heard the sounds of him crashing through the forest. "I'm coming Jake! Don't worry!"

"Thanks Norm, there's an emergency exopack on the wall by my unit I need you to…." he started to say, and then he just slumped back against Tsu'tey's chest passed out. Tsu'tey started to shake him, worried.

"Neytiri," it was Norm again, and Tsu'tey pressed the button on the device and responded.

"Sky person Norm… what happened to Jakesully… he just collapsed?"

"Tsu'tey? Yeah, I've got him here, I'm going to bring him back to Hell's Gate to get fixed up. It seems that someone punched a hole in our uplink unit that we use to connect with our avatars and the air started seeping in and woke him up. He'll be fine, but he's breathed in some of the toxins and is getting sick. We won the battle, our friend Max on the inside says that now that the mercenaries have lost contact with Quaritch they've surrendered. The guys we had on the inside have locked up the enemies in the brig at base, so we're safe." Tsu'tey took a moment to take a deep breath… so they won, Jakesully was right.

"Ok, Sky Person Norm, where should we take Jakesully?" Tsu'tey asked after a minute.

"Take him back to Mo'at and let her know what happened and make sure that everyone else is safe, and then come and meet me at Hell's Gate, I'll be waiting there for you and Neytiri, and any of the other leaders that want to come as well. And by the way… it's not Sky Person Norm, it's Norm Spellman."

"Ok, Normspellman."

"Close enough."

Tsu'tey looked up at Neytiri, _"You heard him, yes?" _

_"Yes, we will do as he says and check on our people and get Jake to a safe place. Then we will meet Norm at the sky people's base with those of us that wish to come." _

Tsu'tey nodded, as Neytiri turned the palulukan around started heading the other way towards the Vitraya Ramunong (The Tree of Souls).


	2. The Man on Wheels

_**Chapter 2**_

Tsu'tey and Neytiri dismounted the palulukan a safe distance from Vitraya Ramunong because they didn't know all that much about how The People would react to the creature being in their midst. Neytiri moved to move Jakesully's body, but he put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. After a receiving a questioning look he picked the other male up bridal style and nodded for her to lead them to Mo'at.

Tsu'tey was pleased to see that most of the survivors had had seemed to make It back, but he was saddened by the numbers… they had all lost so many good warriors. When they saw the limp body of the Toruk Makto many assumed the worse, but Tsu'tey just shook his head and said he had passed out, so they didn't panic. Toruk Makto was a hero to the people, always one of their most precious legends, and Jaksully had come in a time of their greatest need and united the clans just like the stories said. With his help, they had achieved a mighty victory against the sky people. Tsu'tey just prayed to Eywa that Jakesully would be alright.

When Mo'at saw them she rushed over and grabbed Neytiri in an embrace. After losing Neytiri's sister, Sylwanin,and her mate, Eytukan, to the sky people he was sure that she couldn't bear to lose Neytiri as well… or Jakesully. Even if she would never admit it out loud, you could tell that she held him in high regards. He was brave, strong, a great warrior… and contrary to Tsu'tey's former statement at the hunting celebration, not ugly. He was a bit strange, with his useless fifth finger… he still couldn't understand what the 'pinky finger' was used for, and the Na'vi managed just fine with only four… sky people. He knew that Toruk Makto was one of them though, in body, but he was Na'vi in spirit and that was enough for him.

_"I am glad you are safe Neytiri and you as well Olo'eyktan. But,_ _is Jakesully alright? What is wrong with him…" _Mo'at asked them.

Neytiri placed a hand on her mother's shoulder, _"he is safe mother, thanks to Normspellman."_

Mo'at looked at the body in Tsu'tey's arms and then up at the Olo'eyktan. _"What happened to him?"_

_"We were riding to see what was happening in the battle when Jakesully started panicking and asked Normspellman if he was close to their 'uplink site' and we understand that the other managed to pull Jakesully to safety just as our Jaksully passed out," _Tsu'tey told her.

_"Thank Eywa, place him over under that ledge in the mountain to keep him safe until he returns to us."_

Tsu'tey did as she asked as she turned to Neytiri who said, _"Normspellman informed us that we should grab whoever wished to go with us to the sky person base 'Hell's Gate' for an after battle meeting."_

Mo'at nodded, "_Very well… I'll go ask __Akwey as well as anyone from the Ikran clan that would wish to go. I assume that both of you wish to go as well, so I shall remain behind to look after the people." _ Neytiri thanked her and wandered back over to Tsu'tey, who was looking down upon Jakesully with a slight smile.

_"You do know that we'll probably get to see Jakesully's sky person body while we're at Hell's Gate, yes?" _Tsu'tey asked her, and she frowned.

_ "Yes, it's going to be kind of frightening…" _Neytiri stated with a faraway look.

_"Why?" _He questioned.

_"I asked him once if I could see him in that form and he seemed very uncomfortable… there was a great sadness about him, almost as if he was shamed." _

_ "It might just be because he doesn't want to be a sky person? I can't believe someone as strong as Jakesully could be someone of shame," _he reassured her.

_"You're right, that has to be it," _she smiled up at him and lay her head on his shoulder as they both looked down at the man she loved, with respect.

* * *

In the end it was Neytiri, Tsu'tey, Akwey, Mo'at and three of the other clan leaders that decided to fly to Hell's Gate. Menaet, the leader of the Ikran people of the eastern sea, had decided that she would stay and watch over the people in Mo'at's place. The other Three Clan leaders in their party were Tsu'hak of the Ni'awve Clan, Sänume of the Tipani Clan, and Om'nak the Tsahìk of the Tawkami Clan.

When they arrived at Hell's Gate, Mo'at and Om'nak spoke quiet prayers to Eywa… they sky people had completely destroyed the land to build this abomination… but they were here now, and they wanted to make sure that they got the sky people out of their home. They all landed their Ikran, a little uneasily, hoping that it wasn't some form of a trap... until a man, small by Na'vi standards, but obviously tall by human ones with light sandy hair came strolling out and waved at them.

He panted after running over to them, showing that he was obviously one of the scientists and not one of the sky people's warriors from the lack of physical power, and held up a finger as he took a few deep breaths. "_Hello. I'm glad you could make it, nice to meet you… I'm Norm Spellman." _

Tsu'tey felt the tension in his muscles go away when Normspellman introduced himself and crouched down. _"I see you, Normspellman. Where is it that we are needed for this 'meeting'?"_

_ "Follow me, we have certain parts of the base's air system shut down so that we can get you in safely without harming you with the air we need to breathe," _he said.

_"Then how will you breathe, small man?" _Akwey asked.

Normspellman chuckled, _"I'm sorry, I have this mask over my face that allows me to breathe my air while walking through yours." _He motioned to the device that was currently over his face.

Akwey nodded and motioned for Normspellman to take them to the area he had mentioned. While they were on their way he answered many questions that some of the other leaders had… like why they needed to go inside the abomination at all, which Norm explained was because he had machines he could use to explain their plans on how to remove the bad sky people from the surface and send them back where they came from, which seemed understandable. He led them down a narrow, enclosed hallway that was above another hallway that had a few scientist sky people walking around without masks, so they concluded that it was safe for them to breathe down there. Tsu'tey raised an eyebrow at the small man in the wheeled contraption who seemed to be wheeling as fast as he could from a few of the scientists that were holding up needles, causing Tsu'tey to chuckle. Norm looked down at what Tsu'tey had found funny, and shook his head, _"I told that moron to stay in bed… but he never listens." _ He seemed unwilling to say more when they all gave him a questioning look and motioned for them to keep following him. After a few twists and turns they arrived at the big circular room that overlooked a room with thousands of machines below them. _"This is where we'll be talking. One of the others in charge, Max Patel, will be along shortly as well." _

_"Norm, why is Ma Jake not joining us?" _Neytiri asked.

Normspellman looked uncomfortable for a minute and started picking at his fingers as he thought of what to say. _"Ummm… he's still recovering so he won't be able to make it." _ He was saved from having to say anything else as a dark haired man entered the room with a sigh and shake of his head.

"Sorry I'm late; Sully was giving the doctors a little bit of trouble. I swear that he doesn't understand the meaning of rest." He introduced himself in Na'vi to the rest in the room and hit a few buttons that caused a big screen to rise up in the center of the circular room for them to see. He started to tap the screen in certain areas and explain to them how they would be getting everyone leaving from the planet and back up to their ship that was orbiting and waiting to take them all back to their home. It all seemed fairly straight forward and Tsu'tey was starting to wonder why they needed to be there, when Maxpatel (he decided that sky people had very strange names) said that they needed to message from the Na'vi to send with them to try to make sure that no more sky people came back.

_"Are all the sky people leaving... you included?" _Neytiri asked.

_"There are a few of us that would like to stay and continue our research, with no damage done to the environment, if you will allow us to. There are about 20 of us scientists in all and about 7 avatar drivers that don't wish to return home just yet, it at all." _Max answered.

_"If we allow you to stay here, there will be rules of course," _Mo'at stated.

_"Those of us that wish to stay are a few of us that have fallen in love with your world and helped defend it against the others here. But, if you will let us stay, we will sit down and hear your conditions and abide by them without questions." _Normspellman said. Mo'at nodded and they continued to discuss the message that they would be sending off with the aliens to their home.

After about 2 hours of discussion, they decided that they would allow the scientists that wished to stay, stay as long as Toruk Makto approved of the ones that did. They also decided that the message would contain a warning to any sky people wanting to come to the planet that only few scientists would be allowed to come without harm being done to them and only under certain conditions. They couldn't say that none of them could come; they understood that it would only make them want to come more, and that the scientists that remained would need supplies from time to time. They were confident that they could maintain control of the human access point to the planet.

While the elder leaders and Maxpatel worked out the details by which the scientists would be allowed to stay on the planet, since they couldn't return home without being branded traitors for aiding them; Norm, Neytiri and Tsu'tey wandered down the suspended hallway and looked around.

_"_How is Ma Jake doing, and when can he return to us?" Neytiri asked.

"He's doing better, he's not one hundred percent yet because he refuses to rest while there's so much to be done around here, and he's restless to get back into his avatar," Norm answered.

"Avatar?"

"Yeah, it's what we call our Na'vi bodies." Norm explained, and Tsu'tey nodded his head. "I think Jake wants to do what Grace did and make that his permanent body. I honestly don't blame him."

"We would like that, but what do you mean 'I honestly don't blame him'?" Neytiri asked.

Again, Norm looked uncomfortable before answering. "He isn't really all that happy about his human body, and I promised him that I wouldn't talk about it."

Tsu'tey was about to ask him what he meant, when they saw that man on wheels again zipping down the hallway below and away from some more scientists. He was about to ask what was going on when a little speaker box that norm had clipped to his pants started talking, "Hey Spellman, we need your help down here. Sully's giving the doctors the slip again… we need you to talk some sense in him."

"Yeah I'll be right there, sorry about that Sally, he's really not usually this bad, he's just getting anxious."

"Yeah, well the sooner he's better the sooner we don't have to deal with his doctor dodging ass again… he's seriously starting to make some of the doctors question whether they chose the right profession."

Norm laughed, "I know what you mean, but he grows on you. He's a really good guy."

"Whatever you say, but for a guy that's supposed to be brave… he really seems to hate shots."

"Don't we all," Norm sighed. "Be there in a second." He turned back to their questioning gazes and smiled. "Well as you know Jake is doing fine, he's just being a bit of a pain in the ass."

"Is he running away from scientists like the wheel man too?" Tsu'tey asked.

"Ummm…. Well, you see…." Norm started; just as said wheel man zipped past again… only this time they got a chance to see his face. Neytiri tilted her head and then let out a gasp.

"The wheel man is Ma Jake!" Tsu'tey looked at the man as well when she said that and raised an eyebrow again.

"What is Jakesully doing sitting in that thing?"

Norm sighed, "That's really something you should ask him about, and it's not my place to tell you the story even if I knew it, but what I can tell you is that he had an accident."


	3. Norm Accepted

_**Chapter 3**_

_ "What do you mean… an accident?" _Tsu'tey asked. He looked down at Jakesully, the other male sighing and rubbing his head as he talked to one of the scientists.

_"As I said, it is something you will have to ask him yourself, I'm sorry… I honestly do not know any more than he's told me, and that is just that it was an accident. _He doesn't like to talk about it much." Normspellman said.

* * *

Jake hated being told that he had to stay still… he hated being told what to do, period. He was restless, he wanted to be back in his Na'vi body and back with his new family. One of the female doctors grabbed the handle of his wheelchair as he zipped down the hallway and stopped him. Turning around to face her, he sighed and rubbed his head, "I know, I know… I need to be resting."

"If you know, then why aren't you doing it?" She asked.

Jake raised an eyebrow at her, "Just because I know you want me to, doesn't mean that I agree it's what I need to do doc." She started to open her mouth, but he just continued… the least they could do was try to compromise. "Can I at least have a little bit of physical activity so I feel better?"

She looked at him for a few minutes before answering, it didn't seem like too much to ask for on his part… and the exercise would be good for him, "Yes, I suppose you can. But," she started before he got carried away, "you have to take it easy and not stress your body too much… or it's only going to take you that much longer to recover."

Jake smiled, "You the man doc!"

She sighed as he wheeled himself off down to the far end of the hall to the physical training wing; he really wasn't that hard to work with… you just had to learn to compromise.

Jake waved his access pass over the lock by the door to the training wing and let himself in. He hated sitting in a bed all day. If he was going to be forced to stay at the base until he recovered, the least he could do was something to take his mind off of it. He made his way over to the chin up bar, completely unaware of the three figures watching him from above.

* * *

Tsu'tey, Norm and Neytiri followed Jake from above, but keeping a little distance so he wouldn't spot them, when they saw him head into the training room. "_What is he doing?" _Tsu'tey asked.

Norm shook his head, "_Figures… the doctor's letting him use the training room so he doesn't get into any serious trouble… they can monitor him in there and make sure he doesn't hurt himself too much." _

_ "Training room?"_

_ "Yes, it's where people like Jake there go to make sure they stay in shape." _ Norm said.

Tsu'tey nodded and just watched Jakesully as he grabbed a metal bar and began rhythmically pulling himself up and down. He watched as the other male's arm muscles flexed from the effort, and how his face was set with a line of determination. A moment ago he looked frail in the wheeled contraption, but now he looked powerful. Tsu'tey could see how he made a strong warrior among his former people. One thing he still didn't quite understand was why the other warrior had to wheel around in that little chair. He figured it was just something the 'doctors' were making him do because he was recovering. He was so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed that Jakesully had moved over towards a metal bench appeared to be pinned down under a long bar with large circles on either end, and he hissed.

_ "Why is that thing attacking him?"_

_ "What?"_ Norm asked and then looked down to where Tsu'tey's eyes were trained, and laughed. _"It's not attacking him… it's called 'lifting weights.' It keeps your muscles strong." _

Tsu'tey looked down again and noticed that now the other was lifting it off of his body and then bringing it back down almost as rhythmically as he had when he was pulling himself up. He wasn't sure how long he had been looking at him, when he saw that the other spotted them up above them and his eyes widened momentarily, before settling back into grim determination.

"Uh oh…" Norm sighed.

* * *

Jake had been losing himself in his training and not paying any attention to anything around him, just relishing in the fact that he was able to do this without the doctors getting up his ass about it… for now. It wasn't until he moved over to the weight bench and started using that did he feel like he was being watched. Glancing up for a moment he noticed Tsu'tey watching him, while Neytiri and Norm seemed to be talking. His eyes widened for a moment before he got control of himself and hurried to finish his workout. He didn't like being watched with that gaze. He wasn't even sure that Tsu'tey knew who he was looking at… but he didn't want to think about what was probably going through the other warrior's head about him and his wheelchair. It made him look weak… and that was something he never intended to do in front of anyone from his new family, especially not Tsu'tey.

Setting the weight back into place, he moved swiftly back into his chair and rolled himself over to the towel rack and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off of his face. Wrapping it around his neck, he decided that, that was enough for now and wheeled himself back over to the door and left, wheeling himself back to the medical wing and to his temporary room. He hoped that if he tried to make it look like he was cooperating with the doctors they would let him link back up with his avatar when Neytiri and Tsu'tey made it back to camp. Jake knew that they were all going to have to get together and discuss what to say when they sent the rest of the humans back to Earth, and see if there was any way that some of the scientists would be able to stay and work on their experiment s in peace, but he didn't realize that it would be so soon, and why hadn't they included him? 'They won't let me link up again yet because I'm still recovering, and they probably figured that I wouldn't want to be seen like this,' he thought.

When he got to his room he lifted himself back up in his bed and swung his legs back into place. He wanted nothing more than the fuse fully with this avatar body and become one of the people permanently; he just needed to make sure that it was what everyone else wanted too. He knew that he had helped save the people… but he also knew that he had betrayed their trust back at the Hometree as well. After a few minutes being lost in his own thoughts, Norm came in with some lunch.

"Hey Jake, I dropped Tsu'tey and Neytiri back off at the meeting and grabbed you some lunch when I saw you were headed back here."

"Thanks man," Jake let him set the tray down on his lap and waited as he pulled a chair up to his bedside. "Do you think the docs will let me link up anytime soon?"

"Yeah, they just wanted you to take it easy today. I already talked to Max about it, figured that you'd be getting restless," Norm chuckled. Jake nodded and they sat in silence for a few more minutes while Jake ate the food that he still felt tasted kind of wrong after eating with the Na'vi for so long.

"Did they know that it was me?" He finally asked. Norm looked up, startled.

"Yeah… Neytiri figured it out when she saw your face. Tsu'tey didn't seem so sure at first, asked why you were in the chair." Norm said.

"Did you tell them?"

He sighed, "No… wasn't my place. I told them that you were in some form of accident though and if they wanted to know, they'd have to ask you, when you were ready about what happened."

Jake nodded and smiled slightly at him. Norm and he might not have seen eye to eye at the beginning, but over time they became close friends, he was happy for that. "So, have they decided what to do with RDA?"

"Yeah, a bit. They're going to send them back of course, but they're still going to let scientists and supplies come back through Hell's Gate and let the scientists keep up with their research as long as they don't harm the forest. Max is working out the conditions under which they get to stay, with them right now." Norm said.

"That's good, at least there won't be any more Unobtainium mining… for now. They do realize that RDA isn't going to go away peacefully forever right? Some day they might try to come back…" Jake sighed.

"Yeah, they just hope that they can keep the people relatively safe if they allow some human access that they can control for now, I guess."

Jake just nodded. He hoped that the RDA would stay away for a long while and allow the people to live peacefully again. He knew that they wouldn't stay away forever though, not with Unobtainium being as profitable as it was back on Earth.

They talked for a little while longer about the aftermath of the battle that Jake missed because he was unconscious. Norm explained what Max had told him about how they took the base by force, him, the other avatar drivers, and the remaining scientists. Jake laughed when he had told him how Max had said he flipped off Parker and his other goons, and how satisfying it felt, just before smashing a dozer right through the command center's window. He apologized to Norm when he heard about Trudy's death and about Norm's avatar. "The others said that they could help him, the wounds weren't fatal thankfully."

"I'm glad… hey Norm?" Jake said.

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to ask Mo'at if I can join with my avatar fully through Eywa with the help of the people when I get back to Vitraya Ramunong. Do you want to ask her as well?"

Norm perked up at Jake's suggestion. "Do you think they'll let me?"

Jake chuckled, "Well you're not a hunter, but Mo'at seemed to like you when you were around. I'm sure they'd consider it. I'm not even sure that they'll let me," he frowned.

Norm stood up and moved towards the door, leaving so that Jake could get some rest. "Jake… I'm positive they're going to let you, as long as that's really what you want."

He smiled, "thanks buddy, and yeah it's really what I want." Norm smiled as he shut off the lights and made his way back to the meeting.

Jake closed his eyes and thought, 'Yeah… It's definitely what I want,' before falling asleep for a little while. He wouldn't admit it to the doctors, but he really was exhausted.

* * *

Everyone greeted Norm when he walked back into the chamber where all the Na'vi elders were talking with Max. He took a seat over by Neytiri and Tsu'tey who seemed to be just listening to what was going on in the conversation. Norm could tell that Tsu'tey seemed lost in thought again; he seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Neytiri placed a hand of his shoulder and Norm just smiled at her.

"Is Ma Jake alright," she asked.

"Yeah, he's ok… I know he won't admit it, but he was exhausted. He's sleeping now." Neytiri nodded.

"He'll be back at Vitraya Ramunong tomorrow. He's fine though, so the doctors won't object to it," Tsu'tey looked up when he said this. "He's going to want to talk to Mo'at and you two about joining with his avatar when he gets back."

"We will support him," Neytiri smiled. "But, is that all Normspellman?"

"Umm…" he wasn't sure how to ask this for himself. He hadn't been allowed into the clan officially… how could he expect that they would agree to help him as well? He figured he might as well ask… "Well, actually… Jake asked me if I wanted to do it as well."

Tsu'tey looked at him and then at Neytiri before speaking. "Normspellman," he said. _"You fought bravely with us even though you are not a warrior or a hunter. I am sure that we can find something useful for you to do among the people." _ Norm looked at him, and saw the sly smile on his face and realized he was cracking a joke. But the message behind it was clear, 'We welcome you, brother.'


	4. Nightmares

_**Chapter 4**_

Tsu'tey was happy that Jakesully would want to become Omaticaya completely… he was also a bit worried as well though. Grace had tried and failed, but Grace was weak when she tried. He knew this, but he was still worried for that small chance that he and Neytiri would lose the warrior completely. The small party of Na'vi made their way back to Vitraya Ramunong in relative silence, or at least it was silent to Tsu'tey, whom was lost in thought.

Before they had left, he had wandered through the passages until he was above Jakesully's room. He watched as the smaller male turned his upper body restlessly in his sleep, noting how his lower half remained motionless. He was so entranced that he didn't notice when the one Normspellman had called Maxpatel had walked up beside him with a sigh. "I know I wouldn't want to be having one of his nightmares."

"Nightmares?" Tsu'tey asked.

"Yes, nightmares… they're bad dreams, night terrors," he answered. Tsu'tey turned back to look at the sleeping form.

_"His lower body isn't moving, is that normal?"_ Tsu'tey asked with concern.

_ "You mean he never told you or Neytiri?" _ Tsu'tey turned back towards Max with a startled expression.

_"What do you mean, never told us? What did Jakesully never tell us?"_

Max sighed again, Tsu'tey noted that the scientist seemed to do that quite often, before answering his question. _ "He can't walk…"_

_ "Who did this to him? Why did nobody tell us he was injured in the battle?" _ Tsu'tey was outraged, when had Jakesully's sky person formed been injured in the battle?

_"He wasn't injured in the battle…" _ Tsu'tey looked confused.

"_If he was not injured in battle, then where?"_

_ "I didn't say he wasn't injured in battle," _Max said. _"I just meant that he wasn't injured in this battle. I don't know all the details, I wasn't there, but from what I read of his file he was injured back on our home planet in a war. Something happened to his spine and he lost all the feeling and control over his legs. He's been like that the past 8 years." _

_ "8 years… how old is Jakesully? I have never thought to ask."_

_ "He's 28 years old, though he spent almost 6 of those years getting here," _Max said.

Tsu'tey nodded and looked back down at the sleeping male. Jakesully was older than he and Neytiri… she was 18 and he 19 in Earth years. He remembered back to how Jakesully never seemed to want to sit still when Neytiri had been teaching him their ways… it all seemed to click into place for him, if he couldn't walk in this body it only made sense that he would feel free when able to walk in his Na'vi one.

Pulling his mind back to the present, Tsu'tey realized that Jakesully must feel like he looks weak, not being able to walk. Before meeting Jakesully, he might have agreed with that idea. But now after watching all the great things that he had done for the people, and how strong his will was, he knew that he was anything but weak.

"_Tsu'tey, what is wrong?" _ Neytiri asked when they arrived. He hadn't told her what Max had told him back at the sky people's base, but he figured she had a right to know… It just wasn't his place to be the one to tell her, Jakesully had to do that when he was ready himself.

"_It is nothing… I am just tired," _Tsu'tey replied. Neytiri nodded and wished him a goodnight as she went to lay down for rest by the currently empty body of Toruk Makto.

He finally decided to go to sleep as well after wishing Mo'at and the other elders a good night. He drifted off to sleep with thoughts of Jakesully and what his life must have been like without being able to walk.

When he would wake in the morning though, he would fully understand the meaning of the term 'nightmare.'

* * *

Jake woke the next morning with a cold sweat covering his body, he had another of the nightmares that he'd been having since his time in Venezuela. It wasn't every night, but usually when things were getting stressful and he let his guard down, the memory would surface when he was sleeping… hadn't he suffered enough without having to relive the day he lost his legs? Sometimes he thought that his mind just liked fucking with him.

Determined not to make the doctors think there was something wrong with him, he slid himself into his wheelchair and placed his feet on the rests. Just as he was about to open the door to his room and go find Max, said scientist decided to do the deed for him, how sweet. "Mornin' sunshine," Jake said.

"Hey Jake, I was just coming to check on you."

"Well I'm good man, so can we just say you did the full exam thing and let me get to the link room?" Jake asked as he gave him the best smile he could (which of course just made his friend suspicious).

"Jake, what's wrong?"

"What? Nothing's wrong, why?"

Max sighed, "Jake I know you… you don't smile like that unless you're hiding something, so what is it?"

Jake rubbed his temple, contemplating what exactly he should say. Finally he decided on, "Just the usual nightmare… it's nothing to worry about, I've been having it for a while now."

"If you say so, if anything serious is bothering you though… you know you can talk to me right?" Max asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Jake smiled again, only this time it was genuine. Returning the smile, Max stepped out of the way and let his friend past and they headed down to the link room.

They passed Norm's avatar in its tank, and Jake stopped. "How's his recovery going?"

"He's recovering quickly; thankfully the bullets didn't hit any vital organs. He should make a full recovery; it'll just be about another 2 weeks or so until its ready." Max answered.

"That's good; I was worried about what would happen to Norm if he lost his avatar… I think he's going to try the merge with his avatar after I do, assuming the Omaticaya have forgiven me enough to let me try after what happened to Kelutral (Hometree)." Max looked at him with a slight smile.

"Jake, they'll welcome you… don't worry. As for Norm, he told me that he already asked Tsu'tey and Neytiri about it and they welcomed him as well… after making a few jokes about him not being a hunter though." Max laughed, as he opened up one of the link pods for Jake to climb into.

Jake lifted himself up into the link unit and pulled his legs into place, he couldn't wait until he didn't have to do that anymore, and he could use actual, functioning legs again. The thought was almost too good to be true. He had Neytiri, and a family again... he had something worth fighting for, which was all he needed to be happy, just the thought of getting his legs back was almost overwhelming. Max closed the lid to the unit and went behind the monitors to make sure he got to his other body safely. And within moments Jake felt the familiar rushing sensation that led him into his 'real' body.

When he opened his eyes, he noticed that Neytiri and Tsu'tey had gotten him to a safe place at the Vitraya Ramunong, and that his mate was currently curled up into his embrace… sleeping. He looked down at her lovingly and brought his hand up to stroke her cheek. She seemed to sense his movement and woke up with a start and looked back into his eyes, and smiled. _"I see you, Ma Jake." _

_ "I see you." _ He replied and claimed her lips in a welcome kiss.

"I am happy you are safe Ma Jake. We were worried about you, until we saw you moving around at Hell's Gate," she said.

"I was worried for a minute too; if Norm hadn't gotten to the link site when he did I might not have made it. The air here on Pandora is toxic to sky people after all," he sighed.

She turned towards him and placed a hand on his cheek, "_You are safe, that is what matters." _ He smiled and kissed her lovingly again.

"I know you got to see my other body, Neytiri… I'm sure you have questions?"

"Yes," she started. "But you obviously have a reason for not telling me about your other self and that metal thing you were sitting on, I don't want to pry."

"I can't walk…"

She looked at him, "what do you mean? Are you hurt… do I need to go get mother?" She seemed frantic.

"No, I'm fine… right now. I mean in that other body… I can't walk."

"Oh…" She seemed to ponder this for a moment. "What happened, was it an accident?"

He sighed, he still didn't' want to talk about the whole truth so he decided on the simple version. "Yeah, it was an accident, it happened in one of the many battles back where I come from. My squad and I were ambushed, my spine was damaged and the doctors told me that I would never walk again. I learned to cope, live with it."

"Couldn't they have fixed it?"

"My spine?" She nodded. "Yeah, they could have… if I had the money for it, but I didn't have anywhere near enough, so I settled for the wheelchair. Earth is driven by money and greed." Neytiri understood what he said about greed, but money was a foreign concept to her. The People didn't have anything like it, they only took what they needed and everyone contributed to the tribe. No one was left out because of lack of 'money.' As for the greed of the sky people, she had seen that first hand with much of the destruction they had caused to sacred sites… just for some bits of gray rock. She knew that some sky people could be trusted, like Norm and Max… like Grace, but she had no love for the ones that called themselves the RDA.

"We should be getting up; it is morning now… we have a lot to do today." She smiled slyly. "We have to prepare for your journey through the eye of Eywa."

"Wait, does that mean you will let me?"

"Of course Ma Jake, you have always been Na'vi… now you'll just be one of us in both body and mind forever." She smiled again and took his hand, helping him to his feet. After sharing one more quick kiss they made their way over to Mo'at and Tsu'tey.

But when they got there, it was evident that Tsu'tey did not have a very restful night…


	5. Knows No Fear

_**Chapter 5**_

Saying that Tsu'tey hadn't slept well would have been a huge understatement. When he'd finally been able to sleep, after laying awake for what seemed like hours being haunted by images of what he thought could have happened to Jakesully to cause him to be left without the use of his legs, he hadn't escaped the terrible images like he thought he would… not by a long shot. He shook his head and wandered out of their encampment at the Vitraya Ramunong towards a river nearby. Thinking that a quick dip would help was away some of his wariness, he waded in a submerged, letting the water rush over him. As the water washed over him, he slowly started feeling better. No matter what condition Jakesully's sky person body was in, soon he would be Na'vi and leave that broken body behind for good… once he did Tsu'tey swore that he would make sure nothing could harm him to that extent again. It wasn't that he thought of him as weak or of needing protection, just that he couldn't bear the thought of the other in pain.

After the light started showing through the thick foliage Tsu'tey figured that he should probably be getting back to the others before anyone took notice that he was gone. He was Olo'eyktan now, his absences wouldn't go unnoticed. When he made it back he saw that Mo'at was up and about as usual at that time of day and made his way over to her.

_"I see you, Tsahìk." _He greeted her with an uncharacteristic sigh.

_"I see you, Olo'eyktan." _She responded with a nod. _"Is something troubling you Tsu'tey?" _

He straightened himself; it wouldn't do for the people to see their Olo'eyktan showing weakness. _"It is nothing, I just had a bad dream, it does not mean anything." _

Mo'at looked him over for a few minutes before clicking her tongue and saying, _"Our dreams always mean something… or Eywa would never show them to us." _

He looked up at her, he knew she was right, but he couldn't bring himself to accept it. _"I hope in this case it was just a dream."_

_ "What happened in this dream, Tsu'tey?"_

He studied her for a moment, _"It was about Jakesully." _ She nodded, as if she knew this was the case already. _"I saw a sky person that we have not seen before… and he had Jakesully held up by his __Tswin (Queue), shouting at him. If it turns out to not just be a dream I am worried about him…"_

_ "He is strong, Tsu'tey… he shows no fear." _Mo'at said as she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

_"That's just it," _he looked at her and placed his hand on hers. _"The look in his eyes… was that of a man haunted by his worse fear. He looked terrified of this sky person, which is why I am worried… if he can make even Jakesully frightened, what is he capable of?" _

Mo'at now understood the concern in the young Olo'eyktan. If Jakesully could be fearful of this man, what did that mean? She would have to consult Eywa… this revelation also brought another warning… the sky people would be back for sure. How soon though, she wasn't sure. _"I will commune with Eywa on this situation today, do not fear." _

He nodded and looked over his shoulder and noticed Neytiri walking over to them with her hand clasped tightly in that of the warrior they were talking about only moments ago, and he felt a slight smile creep up onto his face.

* * *

As Neytiri and Jake made their way over to Tsu'tey and Mo'at, she could tell that there was something bothering them. Her grip on Jake's hand tightened. _"I see you, Tsu'tey… and I see you, Mother." _ She said as she made the small gesture with her hand from her forehead. _"I am sorry we did not get here sooner, is something wrong?"_

_ "My child, it is nothing that needs to be discussed just yet," _Her mother said, and gave her a look that she understood as 'I will talk to you about it later, away from prying ears,' and she nodded. Beside her Jake shook his head and took a deep breath.

_"Toruk Makto, are you alright?" _Tsu'tey asked. Neytiri smiled to herself at how concerned he had been over Jake when he wasn't with them, but now that he was awake the other simply took on the air of indifference he always adopted in public around Jake. Unless you looked closely, or knew him well enough, you would never guess how the young Olo'eyktan felt about her mate. She shook herself out of her amusement when it registered that Tsu'tey had been asking Jake if he was alright, and turned to look at her him. She saw him take another deep breath and straighten up with a smile.

"I'm fine, it's nothing… I just felt a little lightheaded there for a second. Probably from being away from my body for so long," he said.

"But Ma Jake, you were only away for a day… that's not very long." She said as she touched his shoulder with concern.

"It wouldn't normally be, but I've spent more time in this body than my other one the past 3 months… I think my mind isn't used to a separation for that long."

She smiled, "Soon it won't have to separate at all Ma Jake."

Mo'at looked at him and placed her hands on his shoulders as well, "You will become one with your Na'vi self then?"

Jake nodded, "I would like that, very much so, if you are willing."

"You are family Jakesully, if it is what you wish, we will help you," she said and he thanked her, before looking to Tsu'tey.

_"Olo'eyktan, is it alright with you?" _He asked.

Tsu'tey looked at him for a moment before placing his hands on Jake as well, and with a genuine smile as well and said, _"Brother, I would be honored." _ Jake let out a breath that he apparently had been holding; apparently he had been unsure of how the other was going to respond to his request.

_"Thank you, brother, I am honored as well." _Jake placed his free hand on top of one of Tsu'tey's and smiled at him. Neytiri noted the slight shift in the other warrior's stance and giggled, causing her mate to look at her. She just shook her head, as Tsu'tey scowled at her.

_"I shall start with the preparations for tonight, unless that is too soon for you Jakesully?" _Mo'at asked.

_"It's not too soon, I feel like I have been waiting for this moment for years. I have a family again, and I want to spend the rest of my life with that family_." He had a sad smile on face as he looked up at the sky. Mo'at squeezed his shoulder again and went to commune with Eywa. Tsu'tey bid them farewell also and went about his duties to his people, leaving only Jake and Neytiri again.

She watched him for a moment before squeezing his hand, causing him to look at her with a smile again. "Everything ok?"

"I should be asking you that, Jake," she said.

"I'm fine, just thinking. It's been so long since I was this happy… it's all so surreal." He said as he took her face in his hands. She closed her eyes and placed her hands on his wrists.

"I am happy that you are happy, I am happy that Eywa brought you to me," she sighed with contentedly.

"Me too, you have no idea how happy I am." She gave him a lingering kiss, before taking one of his hands in one of hers and kissing it as well.

"I should probably help my mother with the preparations for tonight, you can rest again if you would like," she said, and smiled at the disgusted expression on his face at the suggestion of more rest.

"Alright, but I'm not resting… I think I'll go and help Norm and Max back at Hell's Gate with the evacuation this afternoon. Will you be coming with to make sure it goes smoothly?" He said.

"I will be there, as soon as I am done helping mother," she said. He nodded and kissed once more before running over and calling Toruk down to take him to Hell's Gate. She watched as he flew away on the mighty Toruk with a proud expression, she didn't even notice Tsu'tey come up beside her until he spoke.

_"We have much to do today." _She looked up at him, as he watched Jake disappear in the distance. _"I worry about what is to come…" _

_ "What do you mean, Tsu'tey? Does have it have anything to do with why you and mother were looking so grim earlier?" _She asked.

_"Let's go find Mo'at, we will discuss it then," _he said.

* * *

AN: I fixed a few corrections that needed to be done in the other chapters as well, I also made sure to re-read this one and make any needed changes before posting this time too, sorry!


	6. A New Beginning

_**Chapter 6**_

"Jake! You get back into your avatar and come back to Hell's Gate? Why would you do that?" Norm yelled over at him as he saw the giant Toruk come down and land just inside the gated perimeter.

"I thought you could use some help with some of the heavy lifting. Neytiri is off with Mo'at and Tsu'tey helping them prepare for tonight. Tsu'tey and Mo'at were acting kindda strange earlier, but I don't think they thought I noticed. They're probably talking to Neytiri about whatever it was right now." He shrugged.

"They're leaving you out of it?" Norm asked, puzzled.

"Well, I mean I'm not exactly up there in the hierarchy of the Omaticaya even if I am mated with the Tsahìk's daughter. It's probably private."

"But you're the Toruk Makto!" Norm exclaimed.

"Hey, calm down… I'm sure it's nothing. Either way, I'm not worried about it just yet… we've got enough on our plates as it is. Now are we still on schedule with getting these RDA bastards off of Pandora?" Jake clapped a hand on Norm's shoulder and grinned.

Norm sighed, "Yeah, we're good… Selfridge is making a fuss though. He says we're all fired if we try to evict him from the planet. He doesn't seem to realize what's going on."

"Well, he won't be our problem for much longer. Let those 'share holders' back on Earth deal with his whiney ass." He said.

"I'll drink to that," Norm chuckled.

"Now let's get to work, this shit ain't gonna pack itself."

* * *

Tsu'tey led Neytiri over to the base of the Vitraya Ramunong where they found Mo'at sitting with her Tswin connected to a glowing tendril, muttering quietly under her breath. He sat a little ways back, trying not to disturb her, and looked up a Neytiri who sat next to him. Mo'at soon finished her muttering and released herself from the tendril and said her thanks to Eywa.

Tsu'tey inched forward, _"Did Eywa say anything about what is going to happen?" _

_"All she has said is that there are many trials ahead and we must stay strong in the face of danger. Tragedy is guaranteed, but there will also be peace many things to be joyous for. Whatever is to come won't come right away… but we have to remain to have faith in Eywa." _She said, as she turned to face them.

_"What is going on? Does this have something to do with what you did not say earlier?" _Neytiri asked them.

Tsu'tey looked at his hands in his lap and took a deep breath. His visions –now that Eywa had confirmed there would be further hardships on the Omaticaya he determined that they weren't just dreams–troubled him greatly. He didn't know how to explain it to Neytiri, he didn't fully know what they meant just yet… only that more sky people were involved and he had a feeling that these were worse than the ones they just dealt with. He was about to open his mouth when Mo'at, sensing his distress, decided to explain things instead.

_"Tsu'tey has had a vision from Eywa." _ Neytiri looked at him and placed a hand on his shoulder. _"He thought it to be a bad dream, and I too wished it so, until now. Now that we know something is coming, though we don't know when, we know that they were not mere dreams. More sky people are coming, and I fear they will be worse than the ones we are sending home today." _

_ "What makes you believe they'll be worse?" _Neytiri asked.

_"In my vision, I saw Jakesully…" _Neytiri looked at him. _"He looked frightened by one of them. This alien had him by the Tswin and was yelling. Jakesully is very brave, he shows now fear, but this time… even he had the look for a cornered animal. I fear for what this might mean for The People… for him."_

_ "We must have faith in Eywa; everything happens for a reason Tsu'tey… no matter what comes to pass." _Mo'at said.

_"Mother is right," _Neytiri said sadly. _"We must trust Eywa. She said there will be trials and tragedy, but she also mentioned peace and joy. Right now we have to worry about sending away the sky people that are here now, before we worry about any in the future." _

_ "You are right, we should be getting ready to go back to the sky people's base and oversee their removal." _Tsu'tey said.

* * *

Selfridge glared at Sully as the former marine stared down at him in contempt. "If you do this Sully, you can kiss your paycheck goodbye. You and your friends will never be able to set foot back on Earth without being branded traitors."

"I have no intention of ever returning to Earth, Parker. Don't you get it, I have a family here now… and I'm never leaving them." Jake spat.

"Whatever, but first I want you to know that I didn't authorize Quaritch to do what he did. It's true I didn't try to stop it… but they were just goddamn trees! What's so special about them, I mean seriously!"

"Look, Grace tried to explain it to you, and you weren't smart enough to get it then. What makes you think that you'll ever understand?" Jake huffed. Just thinking about Grace Augustine jabbed at his heart; it just wasn't fair what happened to her.

"There isn't anything to understand, and I don't care. But you can be rest assured that we'll be back. You won't get away with this you traitor." Selfridge threw his hands up, exasperated.

"Hey, Max! Can you take him back into the holding bay, all he's doing is giving me a headache… he's not going to cooperate with delivering the message to Earth. We'll have to ask one of the scientists headed back to safeguard it." He turned back to Parker, "have a nice sleep Jackass."

Jake sighed, they had some scientists and avatar drivers making a path, while armed, to make sure no one from RDA tried to do anything stupid when they were evacuating. All they were missing were Neytiri, Tsu'tey and the Na'vi that said they would show up to assist. He looked up in the sky hoping that they would arrive soon, and he was rewarded with the sight of several Ikran not long after. There looked to be about 20 in all that came to lend their assistance. Most flew in and landed on their Ikran, but a few rode through the front gates on Pa'li – he recognized those few from the Horse Clan of the Plains. They quickly got into their positions when Jake instructed them where to stand.

Neytiri smiled at him, "Soon they will be gone, and we will be safe Ma Jake."

"I know, I just hope that this goes smoothly." He answered.

And smoothly it went, there were quite a few glares and scowls, but soon all of those leaving the planet were on the various transports that would take them to the ship orbiting Pandora. When the last transport's doors closed, everyone lowered their weapons and watched as they rose into the sky and flew away. There was a collective sigh of relief and a lot of whooping and celebratory cries from the native Na'vi and embracing among the scientists.

Neytiri turned to him and threw her arms around him, giving him a sweet kiss. "Ma Jake, now all that is left now is for your journey through the Eye of Eywa, and then we can finally be at peace." She placed her hand on his cheek.

He smiled at her lovingly, "Yeah, I need to get this body there first before I can make the journey in my human one. Will you wait here for me?"

"Of course, when you are ready I will bring you." She kissed him again quickly before he took off towards Toruk and flew off into the sky in the direction of the Vitraya Ramunong.

* * *

When Jake got to the Vitraya Ramunong he left himself in the care of Mo'at, who helped him into a position similar to Graces at its base before he closed his eyes and felt the familiar tug that swept his mind back to his human form. When he opened his eyes and opened the pod he saw Norm and Max smiling at him. "Are you ready Jake?" Max asked, and he nodded. "We'll go and get you an exopack and give you a moment to yourself."

While they were gone, he took the time to do one a video log one final time, and took one last look around the link room. He would never be returning here in his human body after tonight, no matter what happened to him. It was the start of a new life, a birthday if you will. When Max and Norm came back a little while later, he was ready… Neytiri was waiting for him after all.

They rode to the Vitraya Ramunong on the back of a Pa'li since Neytiri no longer had Seze. She held onto him as tightly as she could without hurting him, and they rode in relative silence, just relishing in the thought of what was about to happen. When they arrived, Neytiri scooped him up in her arms and cradled him to her as they made their way through the crowd of Na'vi. He looked around a bit at all of the smiling faces, before locking his eyes on hers until she set him down opposite his avatar and gave his hand one last reassuring squeeze.

The Na'vi began their swaying and chanting as Mo'at called to Eywa. Soon he felt his mind leaving his body and traveling skywards up above everything that was happening, he would never be able to put into accurate words exactly what is was the he witnessed in the Eye of Eywa, but Grace was right… she was real, and soon he was shooting back down into his Na'vi body as he saw Neytiri lifting the exopack off of his face and kiss each of his eyelids before moving over and placing her hands on the face of his new and permanent home. He also noticed Tsu'tey off to the side looking kid of anxious, was that concern he saw in the other warriors face? His consciousness slammed forcefully into his new body and he tensed. His eyes snapped open and he was looking up into the face of the woman he loved, who smiled back down at him, with tears in her eyes.

"_I see you." _


	7. New Life

_**Chapter 7**_

Tsu'tey watched as Jakesully raised his hand to caress Neytiri's cheek, and let out a sigh of relief… the other warrior had made the journey through the Eye of Eywa safely. "I see you," Jakesully said, bringing another round of tears to Neytiri's eyes as she embraced him. Tsu'tey made his way over to them and smiled.

"Welcome home… brother." He said.

"I see you, brother." Jakesully responded.

"You are feeling fine?" Neytiri asked. "No soreness, no hurt?"

"Yeah, I feel fine."

_"Thank Eywa," _she said as she helped him into a sitting position. Tsu'tey noticed that the other might not have been as 'fine' as he claimed when he saw him wince slightly at the action.

"Are you sure?" He asked, earning him an annoyed glare.

"Yeah, I'm sure… it's just a little disorienting. I mean I'm a little sore, but it's nothing that taking it easy for a day won't fix." He looked down at his human body lying there motionless. "It's a little strange to know that I'll never be returning to my human body ever again… and it's definitely uncanny to see myself just lying there motionless…"

Tsu'tey looked down as well, he didn't know how it must have felt to look down at yourself… dead… but he could guess at the emotions that must be making their way through the other warrior's system. He had to admit that it was strange seeing the body himself, but soon Eywa would claim it and he would become part of the land. He placed a steady hand on the other's shoulder, "You are alive, and you are with us now… where you belong, Jakesully."

Jake smiled, "Tsu'tey?"

He looked down at him. _"Yes?"_

"Call me Jake…"

"Jake…" he tested the name on his tongue. He had noticed how Normspellman, Maxpatel and Neytiri all used that form of his name as well, but he'd never really given it much thought.

"Yeah, Sully is my last name." Jake said.

"Last name?" He asked.

"Back on Earth, everyone has at least two names… sometimes three." Jake noticed the confusion evident on the Olo'eyktan's features. "The first name is a personal name, the second one would be a middle name, and the last is a family name. My full name is Jacob Aaron Sully. I've just always shortened Jacob to Jake."

Tsu'tey looked down at him again, "_Like how Neytiri's full name is __Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite?" _

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Jacob Aaron Sully…" he pronounced slowly, carefully. "Jake, Toruk Makto, skxawng." Jake winced at that last one.

"Hey, I'm not a skxawng anymore." He protested. Tsu'tey and Neytiri laughed.

It was Mo'at however, that brought them back to reality. Tsu'tey looked behind him and noticed that all of the people were staring at them expectantly. He'd completely forgotten they were all still there, he'd been so caught up in the fact that Jake was alright. He turned towards them, and spoke.

"_Jakesully is alright, our prayers were answered. Our brother is with us now… forever." _There was a great happiness among the people as they all got up and started cheering. _"Tonight, we will celebrate. We will welcome our… brother." _Tsu'tey looked back at Jake with a smile on his face and said so only those around him could hear, "My brother."

* * *

The celebration was joyous, all of the clan leaders formally welcomed him among them and Neytiri couldn't stop smiling. All of the Na'vi seemed to want to touch him again, almost like they had when he had first shown up at the Vitraya Ramunong on the mighty Toruk. He was also happy that Tsu'tey had welcomed him so warmly, he thought after fighting together for the Omaticaya they had gotten past the aggressive relationship they had always seemed to have, and it would seem as he was right. Throughout the night he would catch the Olo'eyktan's gaze on him, while he was talking with various clan leaders, which made a warm feeling form in the pit of his stomach.

"Tsu'tey was worried for you like I was, Ma Jake." Neytiri said when she saw him staring over at the other. "I think it is a great relief for him that you are here, he is making sure that you do not go anywhere."

"I'm here to stay, but he never used to like me before… why the change of heart?" Jake asked.

"When you arrived, he was unsure of you… but I do not believe he hated you." She said as she placed her hand on his face, rubbing her thumb over his cheek.

"Could have fooled me, with the way he always acted around me… but anyway, he's not mad at me for taking you anymore?"

"No, he was never saddened at losing me as a mate… we never felt for each other the way you and I do… but, it wounded his pride. When you came back as Toruk Makto, he set it aside." She smiled.

"I'm glad; I don't want to fight with him anymore. It feels… right… to be friends." He waved at the Na'vi male in question when he saw him glance in his direction again. Tsu'tey quickly turned back around and said something to the leader of the horse clan. Jake laughed and turned back to his mate. "I know this is kindda my party, but what do you say to calling it a night and having some fun just us?" He asked.

_"I thought you would never ask."_ She replied with a giggle, before grabbing his hand and leading him off to someplace for more private.

* * *

Over time life calmed down for the Omaticaya people. A month after Jake's transfer to his new body, they'd found and started to settle into a new Kelutral. The new Kelutral wasn't as large as the old one, but it was big enough for a fresh start for the clan. The scientists back at Hell's Gate were relieved to find that Jake's journey had been successful; and soon after his avatar's recovery, Norm followed in Jake's path and joined the Omaticaya clan as well. Jake and Neytiri took it upon themselves to train him in the ways of a hunter, at his request. He may not have been a warrior, but he was a quick learner.

They went to visit and clean the remains of their old home when they saw that Eywa had reclaimed it and new growth was starting to flourish. Neytiri and some of Grace's old students had traveled to her abandoned school and taken all of the books and trinkets before they broke the building apart and rebuilt it near their new home. After his dream hunt, Norm took over where Grace had left off and taught the children who wished to learn, when he wasn't out with the other hunters. Soon when the scientists came out to do their experiments and take samples, some of the younger Na'vi would help them. Peace was finding its way back into their lives.

Three months later, Jake was helping a new hunter fashion her own bow from the wood of the Hometree when he spotted Neytiri talking to her mother with a smile on her face. She made her way over to them a little while later and said, _"I see you, Ma Jake." _

_ "I see you." _He said to her, a smile forming on his face when he noticed hers seemed to show no sign of going away anytime soon. _"You're in a good mood." _

_ "There is much to be joyous for. I came over to see if you would like to join me down by the river." _

_"Ok, just let me finish here with Mi'nate." _He said. It didn't take long before she finished her bow, and thanked him for his help, before making her way over to her mother to show her the work she did.

"You are very good with Mi'nate, Ma Jake… her mother is glad she has you to look after her daughter when she cannot. After her father returned to Eywa in the battle she was very lonesome." Neytiri smiled sweetly at him as he got to his feet.

"Well, she's a great kid… there were a lot of kids that lost their parents in the battle; I'm just doing what I can to make sure that they know that their sacrifices will be remembered." He said as they started making their way out of Kelutral and towards the river. "My brother and I lost our father when were young, I know what it's like to grow up missing a parent… our mother was all we had. I would have liked to have someone there for me when he was gone and she couldn't be around."

Jake hadn't shared much information about his past with Neytiri, but she figured that he would when he was ready. She knew he had, had a brother who passed on but she'd never given much thought to the rest of his family. She knew that sky people didn't live in a clan like the Omaticaya did; they lived separate from each other… a single family in a single home. Jake had once said that the people back on Earth didn't even stop to talk to those that lived next to them, just minding their own business and went on with their lives. She'd never given much thought to how hard it must have been on children who didn't have both parents when they didn't have other members of a clan to help with those left behind. She grabbed his hand and laced her fingers through his, and he looked at her with a light smile on his face.

_"It was a long time ago, I have you now… I have a family. I'm happier than I've been in a long time." _ He reassured her.

Soon they were at the river, but they weren't alone. They looked around at some of the other Omaticaya that were there and smiled as they saw one mother carrying a newborn on her back and another pregnant Na'vi drawing a bowstring. There were children laughing and playing, splashing each other with the water in the river and another child watching them from behind a tree, who giggled when the others splashed some water in his direction. Neytiri watched as a smile crept up on his face as he looked around.

_"Mother said there would be much to be joyous for in the future, new life is one of those things." _She said as he waded into the river and looked up at her, standing on a rock at the edge of the water. _"Eywa has given us reasons to be joyous as well." _

_"Eywa has given us each other, and for that I am thankful. I love you, Neytiri." _He said.

_"As I love you, Ma Jake… but that is not all I am talking about. Eywa has given us a blessing too." _She said. He looked at her, realization slowly dawning on his face. He made his way back over to her and placed a gentle hand on her abdomen.

_"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" He asked. _

_ "Yes, Jake… Eywa has blessed us with new life of our own." _


	8. Promise Me

_**Chapter 8**_

Jake was ecstatic to find out that his mate was bearing his child. When he told Norm, the other was in shock at first… he apparently had no idea that it was even possible, no avatar driver before Jake had tried to actually mate with a Na'vi before. At least, not that he'd known of. Norm congratulated him and Neytiri repeatedly before mounting his own Ikran and heading back to Hell's Gate to let Max and the other scientists know… they were probably going to want to document everything.

Neytiri had gone to continue her lessons on her Tsahìk duties with Mo'at, which left Jake to himself. He sat with his back against the inside of the Kelutral fashioning some thinner sticks of wood into new arrows for himself and Neytiri, when a shadow washed over him. Looking up, he saw the face of Tsu'tey looking down at him. They exchanged the proper greetings and Tsu'tey took a seat beside him.

"Where is Normspellman?" the other warrior asked.

"He's back at Hell's Gate telling the other scientists the good news." Jake said with a grin on his face. Having yet to hear of this 'news,' Tsu'tey looked at him in confusion.

"News?"

"Neytiri didn't tell you yet?" Jake found that strange, Tsu'tey was the Olo'eyktan, and Neytiri's best friend… he thought for sure she would have told him as soon as she'd told her mother. Tsu'tey just shook his head. "Neytiri's pregnant… I'm going to be a father." This time he turned to look at the other warrior, and noticed the shocked expression on his face. It was an expression that was quickly replaced by a warm smile. Jake looked into his eyes and saw all of the emotions dancing through their amber depths; Before becoming fully Na'vi Jake might have thought that the prominent emotion displayed there would have been jealously or hurt, but now that wasn't the case. The other male looked proud more than anything else, it just went to show how close of friends he and the Olo'eyktan had become, and Jake was happy for this.

If anyone had told him a year ago that he'd find friends and brothers in a gangly scientist – that had once pronounced himself as a 'living god' and then fallen over– and a blue alien warrior, that would have gutted him the moment they met if he'd had a choice… Jake would have told them they were on some kind of drugs. But now he wouldn't have it any other way.

_"You will make a great Sempul, Jake." _He said after a few minutes. _"Neytiri is a lucky to have you as a mate." _

_"Thank you, brother." _Jake said and then looked down at the arrows he was fashioning. "I hope you're right," he sighed.

"What do you mean?"

"Well I don't know the first thing about being a father, I never really knew mine." Jake said with sadness. Tsu'tey put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and squeezed.

"Where did he go?"

"He died when my brother and I were very young, about 4 years old I think. The quack doctors my mother took us too said that we were young… the memories would be lost over time and we'd be able to cope. She was right of course, but nothing was ever the same." He looked up at the canopy of the Kelutral.

"Nothing is ever complete when one loses a parent." Tsu'tey agreed. "But there are others to help after such a loss."

"Earth is nothing like here though, when one does lose a parent there aren't a bunch of others around to help care for the children left behind. It would have been hard enough if our mother had been around, but after his death she would drown herself in work, always pulling double shifts and late nights. When we turned 18, Tommy took off to college and went on to get his PhD, and I joined the Marines… I think we were both just happy to get away from that place. Tommy and I kept in touch, always talking almost every night over video links, he was usually up late studying and I couldn't always get to sleep right away… we were close. Not long after we left though, our mother died. She'd been working so much she'd never noticed the sign of the cancer taking over her body until it was too late. We mourned her of course, but we'd known her about as well as our father because she was never around. It left only me and Tommy."

Tsu'tey had never heard Jake talk about his past before. He never knew that Jake had, had a brother, and he knew nothing about him; where was he now? Jake was with them, but if he and his brother were as close as he'd said, why didn't he want to return to him? Tsu'tey looked over to see Jake looking at him.

"Sorry, I am just thinking." He said.

"It's ok, sorry if I unloaded too much on you, it's nothing important anyway… it all happened so long ago." Jake shrugged.

Tsu'tey couldn't wrap his mind around how it wouldn't be important, he wanted to know more about Jake's past. He'd never really cared to learn anything about sky people and where they came from before, but his feelings for Jake made him want to know everything that was to know about the other warrior. "It is important." He said, "I am just… processing?"

Jake nodded and went back to carving his arrows.

"What happened to your brother? Will you never see him again?" Tsu'tey asked.

"He was ki – he is with Eywa now." Jake said, and Tsu'tey grimaced… that explained things. If his brother was dead as well as his mother and father… that would mean Jake had no more family back on Earth to return to. "He was killed just before he was supposed to come here." Tsu'tey looked up in surprise, Jakesully's brother was supposed to come as well? Before he could ask though, Jake continued, "Someone ended his life with a knife for the money he had on him. Knowing Tommy it wouldn't have had to come to that, he would have just given everything he had to the jackass… I have no idea why he killed him, I never even got to find out who did it was. I was on my way out here not much later, put into Cryo for almost 6 years and then, bam… here I am. I thought I was fine back on Earth and then I come here and my whole world gets turned upside down… I wish Tommy didn't have to die, but if he hadn't then I would probably still be back there and never known how miserable I was."

"You would not have come?" The other asked him, confused.

"Tommy was the scientist... the only reason they offered me the gig was because I could link up to his avatar, being twins and all."

"Twins?" Tsu'tey was starting to wish he had paid a little more attention to Grace when she was trying to teach them.

"Identical," Jake continued… he had a faraway look on his face; it was obvious that he hadn't talked about any of this much, if at all. "Other than our personalities, we were alike in every way. It was fun when we were growing up; no one was ever able to figure out which of us they were talking to at first. As we got older all they had to do was know that he was all about finding out the answers of the universe and I was better versed in the ways of getting into fights. The day after graduation I went to the Marine Corps recruiter and took their ASVAB tests and signed up for all that 'Pride for your Country' crap… I wanted to try to make a difference in the world. As soon as I was through with basic and A-school I was sent to Venezuela." He sighed. "There wasn't much there except for death."

"What happened in this Venezuela? And what is this Bah-sic and A-school you speak of?" Tsu'tey asked.

"Well, Basic is military training... for a Marine you go and get yelled at and run a lot of drills in the rain and mud, while your superiors try to see if they can get you to crack under the pressure. Out of all of the types of soldiers where I came from, the Marines were the elite… the toughest of them all. We were also the ones sent to the front lines in battle. A-school was just another branch of training where we went to learn what we needed to for any specific jobs we signed on for when we enlisted. After all of that was over I got my orders to the Hell Hole known as Venezuela… it was horrible. So much death, so much destruction… I lost a lot of friends there. I lost my legs there..." He looked over at Tsu'tey, sadness evident in his expression.

"Did you fight aliens there? Was your planet invaded... like ours is now?"

Jake just shook his head, "No, there weren't any aliens to fight… No aliens would want Earth anyway. It's all so depressing now, nothing but machinery, gray and death left. But no, back on Earth the Tawtute fought other Tawtute … it was like there was a never ending flow of bloodshed throughout our history. People just didn't connect with the planet or each other like they do here. The Tawtute can't make Tsaheylu, and they don't believe in Eywa."

"If they do not believe in Eywa, what do they believe in?"

"There are many things, some call it God… others Allah or Buddha, and there are those that don't believe in anything at all. The only common factor among all is the fact that the humans have no way of knowing if their beliefs are real, they cannot feel or see their deities like we do Eywa. It's a very sad existence now that I look back on it, but it was just normal."

Tsu'tey almost found himself feeling sorry for the Tawtute, but not quite… not after all they had done to his home. He was genuinely happy that Jake was away from that place though. His old life sounded like such a lonely existence… he would make sure that the other was never lonely again, and so would Neytiri. He wasn't sure how much of this Jake had told Neytiri, but he had a feeling that he hadn't shared as much with her as he had just shared with him and it made him feel honored. Even if they could never be Muntxa (mated), he was glad that the other warrior trusted him as much as he did.

Tsu'tey was so lost in thought he hadn't noticed Neytiri walk over to them until she greeted him while taking a seat on Jake's other side. _"I see you, Tsu'tey,"_ she said.

_"I see you." _He responded. He thought for a few more moments while she greeted Jake and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

_"Is everything alright? You both look so serious…"_ She asked.

Tsu'tey looked back up at her and shook his head. _"It is nothing… I was just thinking about everything that Jake just told me. Oh, and by the way congratulations, Neytiri. May Eywa bless you and Jakesully with a healthy child." _She smiled at him.

_"Thank you Tsu'tey." _She reached one of her hands across and squeezed his hand. "What else have you been talking about while I was with Mother?"

"Nothing much," Jake said. "I was just telling him a little bit about my old home… he seemed curious and it helped me to talk about it a bit. I never really got any time to think about Tommy's death much less talk about it." Neytiri just nodded, he wasn't sure how she felt that her mate had told him about his past possibly before he had told her… but she didn't seem bothered by it.

"You are feeling better now after talking about it, yes?" She asked Jake, and he nodded. "I am glad. I do not want to see you hurt."

"As I don't want to see you hurt either." Jake said, while he caressed her cheek.

Tsu'tey felt like was interrupting a private moment until Neytiri told Jake that Mi'nate had been looking for him again and he excused himself to go and help her.

_"You are not upset that he told me about his past before you?" _ Tsu'tey asked her after a long pause of silence.

_"When he's ready, he'll tell me." _She said, gazing out at the night sky. _"I am glad that he was able to open up to you, he has come to rely on you a great deal… you are a good friend." _

_ "Friend… yes, he is a good friend as well… though you know I wish it was more, and yet you still aren't upset that he often is around me?" _She looked at him with a soft smile.

_"Tsu'tey, you should know that I am not upset. The fact that you care for him so much just reassures me that if anything happens to me, he will be well taken care of… as well as our child. Will you promise me that you will look after them if that time should come?" _

_ "Neytiri…"_ Tsu'tey looked at her, stunned. _"What do you mean, if something should happen to you?" _He didn't even want to think of that possibility or the pain it would bring Mo'at, Jake and himself… as well as everyone else in the Clan. Mo'at had already lost Eytukan and Sylwanin, Jake had lost his whole family… he'd lost his father; he couldn't bear the thought of losing her too.

_"You know that I have been learning how to communicate with Eywa more, training for the role of __Tsahìk with Mother. Today I got a message, though it was not very clear." _He nodded, he knew that when Mo'at passed on, Neytiri was to be the new Tsahìk… that was why they were intended to be a mated pair, at least before Jake came around and changed things for both of them. _"I saw Jake and mother, crying… we knew there would be great tragedy coming to us, but I fear that I will not be around to help with it. I know you are to play an important role in helping Ma Jake when the time comes, and our daughter… I saw you with a young girl in your arms and a hand on his shoulder. He will need you Tsu'tey so please promise me that if I am right, and something does happen to me, you will be there for them… for him." _He grasped her hands tightly in his own and placed them against his forehead.

_"I promise, __Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite. I promise." _He said. _"I will protect them with everything I have, do not fear." _


	9. Celebrations

_**Chapter 9**_

_ AN: For those wondering if this fic will be a Tsu'tey and Jake slash, that is the intention… I just don't want to make it come out of the blue and be right there in your face. I want to build up their relationship to that point, so if you're reading this expecting a slash and not seeing it yet, just be patient because it is coming soon. I just want to stay as close to true to the characters as I can, I don't want Jake to go from mating with Neytiri to all of a sudden he's gay! It just wouldn't flow right with the ideas that I have for this story. I have Neytiri as pregnant because it was canon in the deleted scenes from the film and I wanted Tsu'tey and Jake to have a child they can raise together and care for without having to make the story an Mpreg or anything silly like that. Thank you for your reviews, keep them coming._

* * *

Tsu'tey wandered around Kelutral like he usually did each morning, checking on the clan member's wellbeing, as he made his way over to where Mo'at was standing with Neytiri – lately she had been up with her mother each morning learning the Tsahìk's duties instead of sleeping in with her mate. He greeted them as he approached and they returned the gesture before he asked, _"Where is Jakesully? I did not see him in his hammock." _

_"He went with Norm to the Tawtute base." _Neytiri said.

_"I still do not understand why it is he went there,"_ Mo'at sighed. _"The __bad __Tawtute__ are gone now, but the place is still evil." _

_ "The scientists live there, and they are not so bad." _Neytiri pointed out.

Her mother just clicked her tongue, _"I do not like that place, scar on the surface." _Tsu'tey just shook his head, it was true he hated that place referred to as 'Hell's Gate' as much as Mo'at did, but the people there could be trusted… for now. He still thought back to that vision he had before Jake's journey; they didn't spend any time at the base… so what if the new enemy was among the scientists? He knew that Jake had spent time there, and the time was soon coming that he would have to try and describe him to the other warrior to find out if he knew who the man was.

_ "He does not go there often," _In fact Tsu'tey couldn't remember a time when Jake had returned there after becoming one with his avatar. _"Why would he go back so suddenly? Is something wrong?" _He asked.

_"Everything is fine; there is just a celebration that he and Norm were invited to." _Neytiri answered with a shake of her head. _"We were invited as well, but I have my lessons right now… I will go over later." _

_ "What kind of celebration?" _Tsu'tey was intrigued… he'd never seen a sky person celebration before. _"Did they discover something new in their experiments?" _

Neytiri laughed and looked at him, _"No, Jake said it was Maxpatel's birthday, Grace taught us that the sky people celebrate the days they were born each year. There will be much drink and laughter." _

Again, Tsu'tey wished he had paid attention to what the Dreamwalker scientist had said before she joined Eywa… he was starting to feel like a Skxawng for having to ask so many questions. It was not something the Olo'eyktan should have had to do; he was supposed to be wise. _"It sounds interesting…" _He said after a while.

_"It sounds like a waste of time,"_ Mo'at scoffed. _"But I do not dislike this Maxpatel… he is not a bad Tawtute. If you wish to go celebrate with them, make sure you stay safe in your travels. And Neytiri," _she turned towards her daughter. _"Do not have the drink; we do not know what it will do to your pregnancy." _

Neytiri rolled her eyes, _"Don't worry, I wasn't planning on it. If their drink is anything like ours it would not be good." _Mo'at seemed to accept that and went back to her prayers to Eywa after telling Neytiri that her lessons were done for the day.

As they walked away, Neytiri chuckled to herself… earning her a confused look from her companion. _"What is so funny?" _

_ "I was just thinking if there is drink… will Ma Jake try to dance?" _The thought caused a smile to creep up on Tsu'tey's face. He had seen the other warrior dance somewhat at their hunting celebration, but he knew nothing of the kinds of dancing that sky people do when they celebrate. _"He once told me that Sky people do embarrassing things when they get together and drink… at least the ones that don't fall asleep do." _

They traveled out of the Kelutral and called to their Ikran, to take them to the base, and flew off into the sky. Tsu'tey had another reason for wanting to go to the sky person base; he thought that if the man from his vision was there… it was his best chance to see for himself without having to mention him to Jake just yet. He was very wary of doing so because he still wasn't sure what it was about this man that had made the other look so fearful.

After about an hour of flying, they arrived at Hell's Gate and dismounted just inside the gated perimeter when they spotted Toruk and Norm's Ikran, Karyu, flying around to the back of the base and decided to follow. When they got there they saw a large area with strange obstacles and cabins, a strange space with a pole and net at either end and rows of fruit. When Jake saw them, he came running over, braids flying behind him as he ran. "Hey, you came! Max is gonna be stoked!"

"Stoked?" Tsu'tey asked, looking at Neytiri. She just shook her head and smiled, she didn't know what the strange terms Jake used meant either most of the time, but she was used to them it seemed.

"Yeah, it's like happy… sorry old ass Earth term. I don't think anyone there uses it anymore either now that I think about it." Jake said when he got over to them. "Anyway, welcome to the Avatar Compound. The scientists thought that this would be the best place for the party since all of the Avatar drivers will be more comfortable out here in their avatars and so will we."

_"What about the scientists that don't have dreamwalker bodies?" _Tsu'tey asked.

"They're planning on having their own celebration tomorrow when they're done with their experiments. Which is fine, that just means they can do what they find fun inside and we can have fun out here." He said. Tsu'tey nodded, well that put a bit of a damper on his plans. The man in his vision hadn't had a dreamwalker body that he knew of… he decided that he would have to talk to Norm or Maxpatel about it, and see if either of them knew who the man was; he still didn't want to have to ask Jake unless he had absolutely no other choice.

Jake gave Neytiri and Tsu'tey a tour of the compound so they knew what and where everything was. Tsu'tey found out that the strange metals poles and nets were for a game the humans called basketball and the obstacles were appropriately named an obstacle course… the cabins were where the dreamwalkers slept. Jake had told them how his avatar had slept there before he came to be with the Omaticaya. He figured that if they had to be at Hell's Gate he could deal with this part of it, at least nature hadn't been destroyed in this part… not like the rest of the base where the land was covered in a substance like rock.

After the tour Jake said he was going to go and help finish setting up and Neytiri went with him; Tsu'tey would have joined them, but he thought that he would use the opportunity to go and find either Max or Norm. Near where they came into the compound he found Norm rubbing the head of his Ikran and feeding him some bits of dried meat. Norm had never thought that he would get to bond with an Ikran, so now that he had he spent a lot of time around him… most Na'vi spent a lot of time with their Ikran, but not as much as Norm. Tsu'tey smiled and walked over to him. _"I see you Normspellman." _He said.

Norm turned around and gestured with his hand from his forehead, _"I see you, Olo'eyktan." _

_"You speak well, but much too formal." _He chuckled.

_"Grace told me that when I first met her too, sorry. Is everything ok? You don't normally come and talk to me unless you need to know something." _Norm said, and he saw the sadness in his eyes at the mention of Grace.

_"Jake and Neytiri are off helping set up for the celebration and I wanted to talk to you about something." _He said, and Norm nodded.

_"What's on your mind, I'll help the best I can." _

_ "Well, just before you and Jake joined with your dreamwalker bodies permanently I had a vision from Eywa." _He said, _"The only others that know about it are Mo'at and Neytiri… I couldn't, tell Jakesully."_

_ "Why not?" _

_ "We do not know what it means just yet, but there was a man… a sky person. This Tawtute was in one of those giant metal suits… only it was larger than the ones we fought before. He had Jake by the Tswin and looked angry…" _He tried to think about how to describe the man, and Norm looked lost in thought for a moment. _"Jakesully is __Tsteu, _brave_, but he looked afraid of this man… what kind of demon could he be?" _

_ "Well, he's not here right now I can tell you that much. All of the military personnel were sent back to Earth, and we don't have anything larger than the suits that we fought in battle here. It sounds like whoever this is, will be coming sometime in the future or is somewhere else on the planet… and with a heavier arsenal of weapons than the RDA had with them." _Norm said after a few minutes. Tsu'tey nodded, he had figured as much. _"As for who it could be, I don't know that either. I haven't really seen Jake afraid of anyone since I've met him… he usually just gets right up in everyone's face no matter who they are and won't back down. Tommy told me once that he's always been like that, so the fact that he could be afraid of this man is slightly disturbing. The only way to find out who he is would probably be to ask Jake yourself and see if he knows him from back on Earth or anything, but I doubt it." _

_ "Thank you Normspellman." _Tsu'tey nodded to him and placed his hand on the others shoulder.

_"I noticed that you don't call Jake, Jakesully all that much anymore… you do know that you can call me just Norm right?" _

_ "Norm… is much more convenient." _Tsu'tey chuckled, causing Norm to smile.

_"You aren't as scary as you were before, it's kind of nice. I don't mean that you aren't as tough anymore; don't get me wrong, I just mean that it would be easier to approach you now than it was before. Jake would always come back with horror stories when Neytiri was teaching him, he swore that if he was ever caught alone with you, you'd have probably killed him. I'll admit it made me scared when I first met you." _Norm said.

_"I was angry back then, I am not anymore..." _Tsu'tey knew that he had been harsh to Jake when he first arrived at the old Hometree, but he didn't know that the other warrior thought he would kill him after being welcomed to learn from them… drive him away, yes, but kill him… Tsu'tey didn't think so.

He left Norm with his Ikran and went to find Jake and Neytiri, figuring that he would help them with the preparations…

* * *

AN: This chapter was really a bit of a filler, the next one we will get some clues as to who this man may be and more questions of why is he coming... hope you enjoy.


	10. Video Links

_**Chapter 10**_

'Neytiri had been right, there was much drink and laughter at this celebration' Tsu'tey mused. There were a few of the types of drink that the Na'vi were accustomed to, so he stuck with those, but there were also ones from the sky people's home planet, Earth. He decided that those types of drink had odd names… Tequila… Vodka... Gin… Whiskey… he wondered who came up with names like those and shook his head. At first he wasn't sure if the Na'vi and 'avatars' could drink the alien liquid, but seeing as how the scientists didn't seem to find anything wrong with it, why should he? These scientists were supposed to be wise, or so he was told. The more they drank the goofier some of them got he noticed as well…

Norm, who was still not a very physically powerful male, had decided to try his hand at what the Tawtute referred to as the obstacle course. He looked over at it and it didn't seem like it was very difficult… he figured that he could probably complete it in his sleep if he had half the mind to do so… but Norm embarrassingly slipped off of the top of the wooden climbing wall part and landed flat on his ass in the mud, earning quite a few snickers from those who had been watching. Yup, definitely not the most physically powerful, or graceful one among them.

He laughed as he looked over to where Jake stood talking with Maxpatel, it looked like the scientist even wore those white 'coats' on his Avatar as well. Jake was laughing at something that Max had said, and took a swig from the bottle in his hand that Tsu'tey recognized as the Whiskey. He sighed as Neytiri came up to him with Norm, now off of the ground… butt still covered in mud.

_"Why are you sitting all by yourself Tsu'tey? Is the celebration not enjoyable?" _She asked.

_"I am enjoying myself… I had some drink earlier. Just because I do not fall off of a wall and land in the dirt does not mean I am not enjoying myself." _He laughed, causing Norm to flush slightly pink.

_"Hey… at least I'm not doing what Jake is doing!" _Norm protested, earning him questioning looks from both Neytiri and Tsu'tey. _"He's been challenging almost everyone here to drinking contests… I have no idea how he does it, I've never seen a guy drink so much and still be standing." _As if on cue the male in question stumbled a bit, earning a round of laughter from Max and a few other scientists… Tsu'tey just shook his head.

_"Skxawng," _He muttered.

_"You can say that again…hic!" _Norm said. "Aww man… I hate the hiccups."

Neytiri chuckled. _"You have had a lot to drink as well Norm." _

Norm just nodded, and sighed. _"Jake is just a bit of an enigma to me. He and Tommy used to stay up late and chat all night back when we were in the Avatar Training Program on Earth. Sometimes I would look over at the video screen and it really stunned me how much alike they looked. Twins back on Earth are rare if not unheard of now, what with the lack of nutrients in the food there anymore. Most humans live off of Seaweed and Algae now, it's kind of sad." _He sighed again and shook his head. Tsu'tey wanted to hear more of what he was saying, so he just stayed quiet, hoping not to break Norm's train of thought. It was interesting to hear more about Jake's past, and Neytiri looked just as enraptured. _"I'll never forget how scared Tommy was one night though when he was talking to Jake, it wasn't anything unusual or anything… we were in our dorm and Jake was off in some tent in the middle of Venezuela. Jake was complaining about the lack of any real action where he was when all of a sudden there were screams from his end and gunfire. Out of nowhere Jake's tent had about five other guys in it with one yelling at him to grab his gear and hurry up, the natives were setting their camp on fire and killing everyone that tried to run out and quell it. Tommy kept shouting his name at the screen as he watched his brother throw on what protective gear he could and shove his video link in his pack before he took off. The worst part was that even though you couldn't see anything that was going on, you could hear it all from our end." _Norm shuddered and closed his eyes.

_"What did you hear?" _Neytiri asked.

_"It's too hard to explain, just thinking about trying to brings back bad memories… but I think I have a copy of the video link that Tommy kept as a reminder of how evil people back on Earth could be and used that as motivation to make it through the Avatar Program, more than anything. I'll show it to you if you guys want." _He said and got up to lead them over into one of the cabins, away from everyone else. No one seemed to notice they were even going anywhere.

When they got into the cabin they made their way over to the large bed at the very end of the row and Norm pulled out a bag from underneath. _"This is where I keep things that I don't usually want anyone else going through, or I didn't want anyone from the RDA to get their hands on. It should be in here… aha! Here it is." _He pulled a flat screen from the bag and sat down, gesturing for them to do the same. _"This is it, I'll just prop it up at the end of the bed so it'll be easier to see." _

Norm tapped the screen a few times and turned the device on and scrolled through the various video logs and recordings that were on there. Tsu'tey noticed there were some many of him and a man that looked a lot like Jake, only standing, and assumed that it had to have been Jake's brother Tommy that Norm had been talking about. He soon got to the one that he was looking for and looked at them. _"Are you sure that you want to see this?" _He asked.

Tsu'tey and Neytiri both nodded, and urged him to play the 'video.' There was a little static and then all of a sudden they were looking into the face of a very familiar person… it was Jake Sully, sitting in some kind of encampment yawning at the screen. "Hey bro, what's up… how's that whole training thing going for ya?" He asked.

A similar sounding voice answered, "Well you know it's going pretty great we're learning about the different types of Flora and Fauna on Pandora right now, it's pretty amazing."

Jake shook his head and snorted, "Figures you'd find something like alien plants and animals amazing Tommy. You do realize that the people who hired you to go there are gonna try and destroy it all to get to the minerals like they did here, right?"

"They can't," Tommy said. "The agreement they signed with the ICA only limits them to a certain area of the planet for their mining and they aren't allowed to disrupt the species in other parts to get to more so it won't cause a collapse of their ecosystem."

"When has that ever stopped those RDA bastards? Just wait and see Tommy, just wait and see."

"Anything exciting happening there, Jake?" Tommy asked. "Were you able to sort out that issue we talked about last time with that Sergeant of yours?"

"What, Roberts? Yeah, I reported him to the Colonel the other day… we may be at war, but I hate when guys like that prey on women just because they think they can. Marks could have probably handled him on her own, but she shouldn't have had something like that happen in the first place, makes me sick." Jake shook his head, "Other than that nothing much has been going down. We seem to be a bit of a stand still. Good news though, I get to take my leave next week and get out of here for some R&R."

Tommy laughed, "That's great Jake, you can come here for a bit and spend some time with me… you can even meet Norm, I'm sure he'd like to meet you… Wouldn't you Norm?" He yelled to someone behind him.

There was a thumping sound and muffled yelp, "What? Oh yeah definitely, can't wait." Jake laughed and shook his head.

"That sounds goo…." Whatever he was going to say was cut off by the sound of screaming in the background just like Norm had said happened. Suddenly Jake's eyes widened and he looked behind him as a bunch of men ran into the room he was in and started grabbing bags and guns before running back out through the flap in the tent. There was a tall, muscular man with sharp features and no hair that turned around and threw a bag at Jake just as he got his shoes pulled on.

"Hurry your ass up Sully, we ain't got all day. The damn natives are torching the place and killing anyone that's not getting away fast enough so grab what you can and get the fuck out of here, now!" The man yelled.

Tsu'tey gasped as realization dawned on him; the man that had just yelled at Jake in the video was the same one that he had seen in his vision… the sky person that Jake had been afraid of. Neytiri shot him a look and he just shook his head, mouthing that he would tell her later and turned back to the screen.

Jake didn't say anything as he picked up his video link and shoved it into his bag after a quick apology to his brother and ran out the flap (as far as they knew because they weren't able to actually see anything). Jake was panting and running through what sounded like a forested area, they were able to make out the sounds of fearful screaming as well as what sounded like people trying to fight back. There was a thud, and a grunt as Jake fell over and the camera unit fell out of his bag and onto the ground of the dense forest. Grabbing the camera and clipping it to his head gear as he ran, they were now able to see his face.

Sweat pouring, he flicked a glance over at the video link as he ran and chuckled under his breath. "I'm guessing this isn't exactly what you had in mind when you asked if there was anything going on earlier was it." He grunted out as he turned his head to his right.

"Jake, just get out of there and don't get killed or I'll bring you back from the dead myself and kill you again!" Tommy shouted, as Norm swore under his breath in the background, it was obvious that both men were watching as the events were unveiled before them.

Through the trees ahead of him there was a group of people grouping up and preparing a counter attack and Jake pushed himself faster… all of a sudden there was the cracking sound of a gun being fired and Jake screamed as he collapsed in the mud. There were various shouts of "Sully!" and "Man down, Man down! Get a medical evac here now!" And the sounds of Jake's ragged breathing, his face contorted in pain.

"JAKE!" Tommy yelled, "JAKE SPEAK TO ME DAMN YOU! DON'T YOU DARE DIE ON ME, YOU HEAR ME!" He sounded frantic as he kept screaming at Jake to hang on.

"Tommy…" Jake gasped and a thin line of blood trickled from his mouth and down his chin, as he looked over into the camera. "I think I'm coming home a bit sooner than I realized…" He winced again, and then his face went slack as he appeared to be being lifted up and carried away by about another four soldiers.

Whoever was carrying him apparently didn't notice the video link that was connected to his headgear as they took it off and placed it off to the side, allowing them to see the horrific sight before them.

_"There is so much blood," Neytiri_ gasped.

_"Just wait… that isn't even the worst part…" _Norm sighed.

Looking back at the screen, Tsu'tey, Neytiri and Norm watched as a man with a white band around his arm came up and turned Jake over onto his stomach to see the wound in his back. He ripped off Jake's Jacket and cut away the shirt underneath and shook his head. "It's too deep into his spine I can't do anything about it here… we're gonna have to get him evacuated to a hospital." He touched a device around his neck, similar to the ones they used in their own battle against the Tawtute, and said something about sending a Samson right away for a medical evac and not wasting any time because the soldier in question was fading fast. They heard the gasping breaths of Tom Sully through the video link as he watched in horror as the field doctor basically just said his brother was going to die if they didn't get him out of there soon enough. Thankfully an air machine showed up about 20 minutes later and they loaded Jake and his gear, onto the machine and it took off, just before the video screen went blank.

A sigh behind them shook them out of their trance as they stared at the blank screen. "And that boys and girls is the day I lost my legs." Jake said.

Tsu'tey shook his head and looked up at the other warrior and took a deep breath. "Who was that man who yelled at you?" He asked.

"That was Roberts… the damn bastard…" Jake said.

Tsu'tey looked back to the video screen and rubbed his temple, so the man that, apparently, had been Jake's superior in the Jarhead clan was the man that Tsu'tey had been worried about.


	11. Explanations

_**Chapter 11**_

Tsu'tey's mind was reeling over the information that this Sergeant Roberts from the Jake's past would be the man that was coming to their land. As much as he wanted to keep this information from the other warrior, he knew he couldn't. Jake had been sending him questioning glances throughout the night, no doubt wondering why Tsu'tey had been curious about his former superior. He growled in frustration while rubbing his temple. He decided to take some time to himself while the others went to enjoy the ends of the celebration when after they saw that video. He remembered the look in Jake's eyes when they'd turned around and saw him standing just a few feet behind them… they'd been so enraptured by what they were seeing they hadn't even heard the other male walking up behind them until he'd spoken. And, the words he'd spoken… Tsu'tey had seen the blood and known that it wasn't good but to find out that, that was the night that the other man had lost the use of his legs made it that much more horrible. There was a great sadness in his eyes as he looked up at the sky and said, _"Oh Eywa…" _

"Tsu'tey… why'd yah just disappear on us, did I do something wrong?" Again, he'd been too lost in thoughts about earlier that he hadn't heard the warrior in question come up to him a second time. Without waiting for a response, Jake just sat down beside him with his back against the cabin's wood and heaved a sigh.

"It is not that... I was just thinking about something." He said.

"You seem to be doing that a lot lately." Jake chuckled. "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm sorry for watching that video… it was private, I should not have pried."

"Oh…" Jake stared off into the distance and took a deep breath. "There's nothing wrong with being curious I guess. I had no idea that Tommy kept that transmission… and I definitely didn't know that Norm had a copy of it. I just want to try and forget that day ever happened, that was a dark time in my life."

"You are happy now though, what changed?" Tsu'tey asked.

"Coming here… being with you guys, having a family." He looked over at the clan leader with a smile on his face. "You know, if Neytiri or someone had told me that I'd be talking to you about all of this someday I would have just laughed and told them they had a sick sense of humor."

"Why?"

"Well, until I rode in on Toruk you always hated my guts… probably would have killed me if you got the chance. I just never thought that you and I would ever talk about anything like this in a million years." Jake sighed.

"Skxawng..." Jake looked up at the sound of the old insult that the other hadn't used after the day he became Toruk Makto. "I never hated you, Jakesully."

"Could have fooled me," he snorted. "Neytiri told me you tried to slit my throat and called me a demon in a false body when Grace and I got pulled back to our Tawtute forms… if that's not hatred I don't know what is."

"I am sorry… I was just upset." Tsu'tey looked down at his hands that were folded in his lap and sighed.

"I get it, I really do… I mean I stole your future mate, and I can't even say I didn't know what I was doing. I just didn't know that the consequences would be so high by doing it." Jake looked over at Tsu'tey and tried to smile, "I don't usually think before I do anything and it tends to get me in a lot of trouble. I don't regret it though, I love Neytiri."

"She is very lucky woman to have a mate like you." Tsu'tey said. "I love her too… but she's like a sister to me, but I would have been her mate out of duty and done everything I could to protect her."

"I know, I'm still sorry though. But enough about that… are you sure everything's ok? I mean when you saw what happened on the screen you were seemed pretty focused on knowing who Roberts was." Jake said.

Tsu'tey knew that this was coming; he couldn't keep it from the other male for long anyway. Not that he was really obligated to tell Jake anything about his vision he'd had, he wasn't Olo'eyktan or Tshahìk… but he was Toruk Makto and Tsu'tey did care about him and value his opinion. There was also the fact that he wanted to know more about this man and what kind of danger he could pose to their people.

_"I had a vision from Eywa…" _He said, _"Neytiri and Mo'at know about this as well. I just didn't want to burden you with the information just yet." _

_ "How long ago was this?" _Jake asked, turning to look at Tsu'tey.

_"It was just before you became one with your dreamwalker form to be with us. Mo'at communed with Eywa after I talked to her and had her own vision. Eywa had said there would be many joyous things in our future and peace, but there would be tragedy as well… our faith would be tested." _

_ "That's not all though is it? There's more…" _

_ "Yes, there is more… in my vision there was a man, a sky person, and he had you held by the Tswin, yelling at you. You are brave Jakesully… I have never seen you frightened before, but this time you looked fearful." _Tsu'tey felt slightly better than he'd finally told the other warrior what he'd seen, but the images still weighed on his heart.

_"What does this have to do with Roberts though? I don't understand… Tsu'tey?" _Jake asked, eyes wide. They'd just managed to get back to relative peace after what the RDA had put them through and now he was finding out that it wasn't going to last? But he still couldn't figure out what Roberts had to do with anything.

_"When we were watching the images earlier I recognized this Roberts as the sky person from my vision, though I haven't told Neytiri about it yet. I do not know what it means, or exactly what is going to happen, but I do know that he is part of the future and so are you." _He said, and looked over at Jake who was just staring off into the distance with a shocked look on his face.

After this went on, Tsu'tey got worried and grasped his shoulder and shook him slight, "Jakesully?"

Jake shook his head, "Sorry that's just a lot to process… but basically what you're trying to say is that you have no idea what this vision means exactly, just that our future holds Joy, peace, tragedy, a test of faith, and my old marine superior?" Tsu'tey nodded. "I really hope that this was just some dream and not an actual vision from Eywa…"

"Eywa shows us things for a reason, Jakesully… although, I too wish it was just a dream as well, I thought it might have been until Mo'at confirmed it to be a vision." Tsu'tey sighed. "What did this Sergeant Roberts do that was so horrible?"

Jake took a deep breath and stood up, motioning for Tsu'tey to follow him as he walked over to the fruit patches growing in nice, neat rows. "Roberts was my superior when I was in the Marines back on Earth… the Jarhead clan… the group he led consisted of me and a few other guys: Morgan, Martinez, and Anderson. But we also had a girl that I'd gone through basic with, Leila Marks… and she was very pretty, and that usually gets girls in trouble where I'm from. Roberts took notice of her and no matter how many times she told him that she wasn't interested, he just kept on trying."

Jake growled softly before continuing. "Marks was like a sister to me, I couldn't stand seeing that scumbag salivating over her every goddamn day. One day I heard a scream though when we were out in Venezuela and I ran from my tent and found that he had her pinned up against a tree with his hands down the front of her pants… I couldn't help myself, I just saw red. To make a long story short, we fought and I won, so I was able to get her out of there and over to the medical tent so I could try to calm her down. Marks was one tough chick, though you wouldn't guess it from looking at her, but she was shaken bad… she kept asking me for help with tears streaming down her face, so I helped her get cleaned up and took her into the command tent and had them pull the Colonel Fernandez up on the Video link. She tried the best she could explaining what had happened in the woods, and I picked up where I saw them and with what happened afterwards, the Colonel told us that he was going to give Roberts a warning before taking the case up against the disciplinary committee and he said that Marks and I were going to get to take our leave a little early so we wouldn't be there when the hammer came down. A few days later, Roberts had a call he needed to take from Fernandez in the command tent and we knew what it was about as soon as he came out fuming and glaring in our direction. Later that night though… well you saw the video so you know what happened… or well most of it at least."

"Vrrtep (Demon)," Tsu'tey muttered as he shook his head, letting what Jake told him soak in. _"What happened to this Leila that you spoke of, was she able to get away from him safely?"_

Jake looked up at the sky, the corners of his large amber eyes glistening_. "She didn't make it. Just after I got shot, someone got her from behind as well, the only difference is that they hit her in the head and not the back… she'd been too out of it after what happened that she forgot to put her headgear on before leaving the encampment." _

Tsu'tey put a comforting hand on the other warriors shoulder, and was surprised when Jake place his own hand on his and gave it a squeeze.

"As soon as I was out of the hospital, Tommy took me to see where she was buried so I could pay my respects… she was such a nice girl, sweet as can be. She didn't deserve to die out there like that, not shot from behind while running away. I hate the Tawtute and what they do… they're Vrrtep."

"Not all are Vrrtep, Jakesully… the scientists here, though a little strange, are not Kawng (Bad/Evil)." He said… he couldn't believe he was defending sky people, but he couldn't bring himself to view the scientists as anything but harmless. "What happened to the Vrrtep, Roberts?"

"He got kicked out of the Clan and I never heard from him again, at least not after the night the disciplinary committee gave him the news." Jake said as he plucked a Utu mauti (Banana Fruit) from a vine.

"What happened, brother?" He asked, fearful of the answer.

Jake locked eyes with him, _"He warned me that he would take away all that I hold dear if it was the last thing he did… because I ruined his life."_


	12. Waiting

_**Chapter 12**_

It was well into the dark, early morning hours when the celebration had ended and those that needed to make their way back to Kelutral had started their journey home. They flew in relative silence except for the occasional laugh from Jake as he flew Toruk close enough to Norm to cause the other's Ikran to wobble a bit in the air and make its rider hold on tightly for better balance, even Neytiri cracked a smile. Despite all of the things that they'd seen on that video link recording, it was a relief after so much suffering to be able to have a fun night together and enjoy themselves.

"So, I thought you were going to release Toruk back into the wild after the battle?" Norm called over to Jake.

"I did… the big guy just came back. Well not right away, he went out hunting for his dinner first but when I woke up the next day and went to go call for my Ikran… Toruk was just kindda chilling there, waiting." Jake chuckled.

He hadn't realized when he made Tsaheylu with the big guy, that the great Toruk would actually want to be with him longer than was necessary… or was it possible that he could sense the danger that might once more grace their world and opted to stay and help when the time came? Jake just shook his head as he looked down at the back of the great crimson, black and yellow body beneath him. Through their connection he could sense Toruk's feelings of pride and independency, but there were also those of caring for the rider he was bonded with. Jake hadn't given it much thought when Neytiri had told him the legends of Toruk, but it appeared as if, like an Ikran, the Toruk bonded for life, only riding with one Na'vi warrior in its lifetime… not that Jake minded, it was kind of nice to have to biggest badass in the sky as an extension of himself.

One thing he made sure to do though was use his Ikran, tìtxur, for his hunting trips. Jake felt bad about leaving tìtxur behind during the battle with the sky people in favor of Toruk, but the Ikran had understood… it wouldn't be the same however if he left him behind on a hunt or if he didn't go to see him on the days that they weren't hunting. The people and their Ikran grew very close; he didn't want to go through what Neytiri had with the death of Seze. It took three months of convincing for Neytiri to finally get back up and bond with another, Jake had convinced her it was what Seze would have wanted. Her new hunting partner was sleek and beautiful, just as her rider was, and she'd been glad that she had made the choice to bond again.

Soon enough, they were landing just outside of Kelutral and watching their Ikran take flight up into the branches of the great tree, Toruk flying to one of the lower of the nesting braches because some of the top wouldn't support his weight. Neytiri walked up to him and placed her hand in his, his extra finger hanging awkwardly off to the side, as he looked down at her and smiled. "How are you feeling?" He asked.

"I am fine, Ma Jake, why?" She looked at him with questioning eyes.

"I just don't want anything to happen to you… or the baby." He smiled.

Neytiri just shook her head, "I am pregnant… not weak." She playfully glared at him and then let her expression soften slightly, "We are fine, Jake… I know you worry, but please try to relax."

Jake nodded and followed her into Kelutral and up to their hammock where they curled up against each other for sleep, trying not to disturb the others around them. "I had a talk with Tsu'tey earlier, about what Norm showed you."

"Jake," Neytiri stroked his cheek with her hand, tracing the patterns of his markings underneath her fingers. "I'm sorry, I know that it must have been hard for you to see that again, relive the pain."

He kissed her softly sighed when they broke apart. "It's not that, I've come to terms with what happened to me in the past… injury is a part of war, tragic as it is. But Tsu'tey told me about his vision from Eywa."

Neytiri nodded her head, showing that she knew that Tsu'tey would have confided in him eventually. "What did he say?" She asked.

Jake gulped, "he said Roberts was the Tawtute that he'd seen, and he admitted that he didn't know what it meant basically… but I still hope, no matter what he told me, that it isn't real… that it's just a dream he had."

She kissed him gently and nuzzled into him further. _"We do not know what the future will bring Ma Jake; all we can do is wait and see what happens." _

_"Neytiri… if he's coming here, he's coming here for me, I just know it." _Jake wrapped his arms around her tightly, holding her closely as if to try and protect her from this confusing future.

_"We always knew they would be back someday, and we still don't know when it is, just be calm until we know more, he might not even know you are here…" _Her words drifted off as she succumbed to the sleep that was pulling at the edges of her consciousness, lulled there by the steady thudding of the heart beneath her.

Jake looked up into the canopy of leaves and branches above them and sighed, he hoped she was right. It could all just be one big coincidence; Roberts didn't even know that he was on Pandora after all. It wasn't much longer until the steady breathing of his mate lulled him into sleep as well.

* * *

Tsu'tey sat with his back against the Kelutral, too lost in thought about what the future held that he couldn't sleep. He looked up when he sensed the presence of Mo'at behind him and nodded to her before saying, _"I see you." _

She returned the greeting and took a seat down next to him, looking at his face. _"I know what troubles you, young Tsu'tey." _She said after a few minutes.

He looked at her and nodded, _"Eywa has shown you who it is we should be expecting, then?" _He asked.

_"Not specifically, but she has told me that you are in great distress." _

_ "His name is Roberts," Tsu'tey_ said with a growl in his throat. _"Jakesully told me what he did back on Earth and this Tawtute is a true __Vrrtep; the lowest kind of scum. But that is not what troubles me most." _

_ "I know, it is Jakesully you are worried for, is it not?" _She asked softly and he nodded, his sharp angular features softening as he stared off into the distance.

_"He told me that this Vrrtep told him that he would take away those most dear to him for ruining his life… Neytiri has also told me that she does not believe that she is going to be here when we face our test of faith. I am worried for her as well Jake… we have lost so much already." _

_ "No matter what happens we must have faith in Eywa, I do not wish anything to happen to my daughter… but she has yet to complete her training and doesn't quite understand what the messages from Eywa mean as of yet. We do not know for sure, all we can do is wait and see." _Mo'at said softly.

_"I hope you are right, we will just have to wait. But we must be strong, we must be prepared… if these sky people bring more war upon us then we will destroy them and cleanse Eywa of their destruction once more." _He got up and stood tall, sturdy. Mo'at was proud of him, he had been given the role of Olo'eyktan sooner than he had expected and yet he had done his duty to his people in protecting them, she knew if his parents had still been alive they would have been proud as well.

Tsu'tey offered her his hand and helped her to her feet before bidding her a goodnight. He was strong, he was sure of himself… even if he was a bit wary of the future to come. He would protect his people and those he cared about to his dying breath if that was what Eywa wished of him, he had never been one to back down from his duty. The past few months since learning of this new future he had been somber, not as precise with anything he had done, and it embarrassed him. If he let his guard down, he wouldn't be able to protect Jake, Neytiri, or his people, and he couldn't let that happen. _"Nothing will hurt them while I'm still here." _He muttered under his breath before walking swiftly to his own hammock and turning in for the night.


	13. Things to Come

_**Chapter 13**_

_6 Years Later…_

_"Sa'nu! Sempu!"_ A young Na'vi girl cried as she ran over to the two adults conversing with the Olo'eyktan and Tshahìk, all turning their gazes to the child.

_"Mawey __Zuleika, Mawey."_ Her father said in a reassuring voice. _"What is wrong child?" _

_ "Ate'tukan is being picking on me again, trying to grab my tail Sempu!" _She pouted, earning a quiet bit of laughter for the group of adults.

Zuleika's mother pulled her daughter in the lap and ran her fingers through the girl's braids in a soothing gesture. _"Zuleika… your brother is only trying to play with you, not pick on you." _The girls five fingered hand moves up to bat her mother's out of her hair at the outlandish comment that her little brother could be playing and not being, in reality, the most annoying person at the Kelutral.

_"He is a __Skxawng…" _She pouted again.

_"It isn't nice to call him a Skxawng Zuleika… you are lucky to have each other, twins are a miracle among our people." _Her mother said, giving her mate a tender look. _"Your father was a twin…" _

She looked up, never having heard this before and her eyes widened as she looked at her father. _"Is it true Sempu?" _She asked.

Her father looked lost in memory for a moment before reaching over to tickle her, _"It is…" _He said with a chuckle. _"Having a twin is fun, your uncle and I tormented your grandparents endlessly… Grandmother always wished that one day when we had children of our own they would be just as much trouble for us as we were for her." _This earned a little chuckle from the Tsahìk, and a slight shake of her head. _"But…" _He said in a low voice, _"If you and your brother do not get along then your grandmother's wish will be in vain, because you see… it takes two to match what we did." _He winked at her and saw the realization dawn on her features… if she and her brother played together, there could be much fun to be had at annoying their parents endlessly. She gave him a quick hug before running off to find her new partner in crime.

_"You always were a Skxawng, Jakesully_." The Olo'eyktan laughed. _"You do know now that Zuleika and Ate'tukan will never relent in their endless torment on you or Neytiri as well as us." _

_ "It got her to agree to play with him more didn't it?" _Jake shrugged, and smiled over at the other warrior. _"Besides, they are my children after all… it would only be a matter of time before they figured it out on their own just as Tommy and I did." _

Neytiri just shook her head a smiled, she and Jake had been blessed with two beautiful children and peace was fully returning to the Na'vi clans and remaining humans left on Pandora. The children who went to be taught by Norm love him, and so did his mate. It wasn't long after the twins were born that Norm and Ninat had stated their intentions to be mated before Eywa, and everyone had been happy for them. Now, they were expecting their first young one as well.

The only conflicting thing for them was that the supplies for the scientists had arrived 3 years earlier than should have been possible, and they found out that while they had been traveling to Pandora the first time for those 6 long years the humans had developed their technology further to allow them to cut the travel time in half. After learning this, they monitored the skies closer… watching for any more menacing sky people ships that could possibly be bearing Jake's former Sergeant, Roberts. So far there had been no sight of him. They had been informed by one of the scientists that a message was passed along with the supplies from people they knew back on Earth stating that the RDA still wasn't happy at the financial loss at having to pull off of Pandora… there was even a rumor of them preparing some kind of countermeasure, though it was still only rumor. That didn't mean that the Na'vi weren't watching out just in case it turned out to be a reality.

Over the last 6 years Tsu'tey and Jake had grown closer as well. Neytiri was often with her mother, helping with the Tsahìk duties, or tending to the children so the two males took to hunting together and easing themselves into a close friendship… though occasionally, if Jake hadn't know better, he would catch the other warrior looking at him with a wistfully. But it was Tsu'tey… there was no way the other male would be looking at him like that Jake would tell himself, so he let it go. At first the people had been questioning about why their leader and the Toruk Makto had appeared 'joined at the hip,' but as time went on it became so regular that it was just something expected.

Jake was looked up to among the Omaticaya for being Toruk Makto, and not too long after as being the Olo'eyktan's most trusted council. The children loved learning from him about the various hunting techniques they would need to learn by the time they took part in their Iknimaya. Some of the younger children liked to muse about his and Norm's useless extra finger and would question what its purpose was until Jake had told them it was for catching the tails of naughty little boys and girls, earning a lot of squeals and giggles. Every day Jake would thank Eywa for all of the things she opened his eyes to, and he would be forever grateful to her for saving his life when he had just about given up hope on himself.

Jake sighed, leaning back onto his hands and closing his eyes… a smile spreading across his face as the other three Na'vi kept up their conversation about the events of the upcoming clan gathering. Ever since the time of Great Sorrow had ended the Clan leaders had agreed to remember their victory with a three night long celebration each year… also to allow them to remember and honor those who gave their lives to Eywa to bring this peace. This year the celebration was the be held at the Omaticaya's Kelutral, it would be the first one attended by some of the youngest members of the Clan that hadn't been old enough to make the journey years past and had to stay behind with some of the elders that weren't up to it either. There was a buzz of excitement among the people as the arrival of the other clans grew closer.

_"Ma Jake… are you even listening to what we're saying?" _Neytiri scolded lightly as she mock glared at him.

_"What? Oh yeah, clans coming to Kelutral this year… much to plan still… _Yup, _I'm listening." _He said as he shook himself out of his thoughts and grinned sheepishly at his mate, who just sighed. _"Sorry, I'll pay attention more… what were you saying?" _

_ "We were saying Jakesully that the __Sänume_ _and the Tipani are to be arriving tomorrow as well as the Akwey and the Horse Clan. We wanted to make sure that we were all going to be prepared to greet them as proper when they arrived." _Mo'at said smoothly.

_"I know you three will be ready for them, but I will too… don't worry. Do you want me to dress up in my Toruk Makto garb to welcome them since we will be at our Kelutral this year?" _He asked.

_"I think that would be most honorable, Jake." _Tsu'tey agreed with a nod that Jake returned. Apparently getting what they wanted from him they resumed their conversation that he didn't really need to participate in all that much, since they seemed to have the details worked out on their own. Out of the corner of his eye he glanced at Tsu'tey, the sharp angular features of his face and the majestic way he held himself… his friend had grown into his role as Olo'eyktan well and was as powerful a presence as ever. However, there was always that side of him that he seemed to show when he was around Jake when he thought the other wasn't paying attention… the gentle curve of a tender smile and a great gentleness in the way he would place his hand on Jake's shoulder. He had come to welcome those things; there was a sense of rightness to them.

* * *

The following evening, just before dusk, the clan was gathered at the entrance of Kelutral to welcome their guests. Tsu'tey stood proudly in the middle with Jake to his right and Mo'at and Neytiri at his left, looking proud as ever of his people. He glanced over at Jake to see he had a determined look on his face of one who was mentally willing himself to not disgrace them. He chuckled inside as he thought of how the other male had managed to finally master the art of their language and all of their ways and stories… yet he still seemed to be as clumsy as he had been in the past. True he had learned to move with some finesse, however he still wasn't as graceful as the rest of the Omaticaya which he knew frustrated the proud warrior.

It wasn't long before the Tipani horns could be made out in the distance.


	14. Arrivals

_**Chapter 14**_

The people watched patiently as Sänume and the Tipani Clan made their way through the dense foliage to their Kelutral. The Tipani, despite being so far spread, were the first of the Clans to arrive for the gathering… they were one of the only Na'vi clans that lived spaced out in different villages and camps instead of everyone staying together in one Hometree. Jake had also heard stories of a Tipani warrior that had been a former dreamwalker and had sided with the Na'vi much like himself, that had led a battled and killed the man in charge of the SecOps division of RDA before Quaritch was left in charge, named Able Ryder. But, he'd never met her before… Neytiri had told him that she hadn't been able to attend any of the former gatherings because she was off leading a hunting party to other parts of Pandora to make sure that the sky people presence was gone. One thing he did know though was that the Tipani had sent word that she and her hunters had returned and would be attending this year.

Sänume soared down into the clearing and gracefully slid off of the back of her Ikran, followed by the rest of her people, and took a step forward to greet the Omaticaya leadership. _"I see you, __Tsu'tey te Rongloa Ateyitan, Olo'eyktan of the Omaticaya people." _She said with a slight nod of her head in his direction before turning to Mo'at and Neytiri, repeating the formal gesture. She turned to Jake last and said, _"I see you, Toruk Makto, Jakesully." _

They all returned her greeting and Jake sighed internally as he realized that this would have to be repeated for each Clan that would be coming for the gathering. When they had gone to the other Kelutral's he had only personally had to greet the leadership of the hosting tribe before they were permitted to go and make camp. He was glad that he wasn't the Olo'eyktan, who had to do this every single time, he felt sorry for Tsu'tey.

_"Before we go make camp, I would like to introduce to you AbleRyder, whom I'm sorry you haven't been able to meet sooner." _Sänume said, gesturing for a woman standing near the front of the group to come forward. Jake looked down at her hands to confirm that, like him, she had 5 fingers as well… showing what she was. When they were done greeting her as well, she turned to Jake with a sly smile. "Where do you hail from soldier?" She asked him in English.

"Charlotte and I am not a soldier anymore… I'm a warrior of the Omaticaya Clan." He said proudly, standing up taller.

"I didn't mean it like that," she laughed. "I'm just used to addressing fellow former military persons, like myself, like that. I didn't mean to offend you, I don't hold any love for Earth anymore either, nor am I proud of what we did back on it."

"Former military?" Jake asked. "What branch did you serve in?" The other Na'vi all kept silent as they listened to the exchange of the two Dreamwalkers.

"I was a signals specialist for the Army. Until I came to Pandora, that is." She answered. "Able's also just a nickname from my Army days, you can just call me Ryder."

Jake smiled, he hadn't known that she was former military like himself… he figured they had more in common than he thought previously. "Sigs Spec, not bad… I was a Corporal with the USMC, before losing my legs in war and being discharged. You can call me Jake, or even Sully if you prefer."

"Ok, Sully," she smirked. "It was nice meeting you and your people… it's was also nice to know that I wasn't the only one to join the Na'vi in defending their home." She nodded her thanks to the rest of them and gave Jake one final salute before returning back to the Tipani crowd.

_"If you wouldn't mind, we would like to go rest up before the arrival of Akwey and his Clan. It has been a long journey." _Sänume said in a polite voice to Tsu'tey and Mo'at.

_"I do believe that would be best," Mo'at_ answered. _"We are expecting Akwey shortly, so we will remain." _Sänume nodded before leading her people off to the other side of the Kelutral to set up their encampment.

Neytiri turned to Jake and whispered, _"You and this Ryder both came from the same clan on Earth, yes?" _

Jake looked at her for a moment before understanding her question, _"In a way… we were both in the military back in our country, but it was very large, we've never met before back there if that was what you were wondering." _

Neytiri nodded and Jake chuckled to himself. He found her small bout of jealousy kind of endearing, even if there wasn't any reason for her to be that way.

* * *

Not long after the Tipani Clan arrived, the Horse Clan made their appearance, as well as 4 other Clans. The following night the remaining 9 Clans had gathered, and he was surprised that they were all able to fit in the same area. He had to remind himself that they weren't all in Kelutral, but spread out through the forest and on the outskirts of the giant tree; some had even taken to the not so distant cliffs.

Jake and Ryder hadn't talked much since their initial meeting, seeing as how her mate seemed just as jealous as Neytiri had been, which Jake thought was kind of funny. Despite being mated to Neytiri, that hadn't stopped some of the other Clans unmated women – and even some of the men – from giving him coy smiles because he was the great Toruk Makto. Tsu'tey, he noticed, would glare at a few of them to scatter them almost as much as Neytiri did… he was happy for their peace and understood the need to celebrate and honor those who went to Eywa for it, but he had to admit that he was going to be glad when the other Clans went home and he could return to his quiet life with his mate and children in their home.

The last day of the gathering, Jake climbed up to the nesting spots of the Ikran and called to his own, who came swooping down, happy to see his rider. Jake chuckled and gave him a piece of dried meat as a treat and rubbed his hand down the ikran's snout. _"Sorry it's been so loud lately, it'll be over soon though so don't you worry." _

His Ikran made a relieved cawing noise at his declaration, causing Jake to chuckle a bit… until he heard the sound of a piece of bark snapping under foot and turned around.

_"Mawey, Ma Jake… I didn't mean to sneak up on you." _Neytiri said lovingly, before falling into his arms and lying her head on his chest… listening to the steady beat of his heart.

Jake lifted her chin up and pulled her into a tender kiss that quickly turned to one of passion before they broke apart for air. _"I see you," _he whispered lovingly in her ear, causing her to shiver slightly.

_"I see you." _She smiled before giving him another chaste kiss and pulling away slightly. _"So, you came up to be alone for a bit?"_

_ "_Yeah, _there has been so much going on… I just needed to clear my head for a bit. It's also tiresome to run after the children and make sure they don't go grabbing anyone's tails and causing an incident… I never should have told them to work together." _He chuckled.

_"They are children; they need to have their fun… I don't think the people will be offended by a little tail grabbing, as long as they don't hurt anyone." _Neytiri said in a soothing voice.

_"I know… I just can't wait for everything to go back to normal again. I want to be able to sit down at the evening meal with my family and not have you or Tsu'tey glare at anyone eyeing me… it's kind of disturbing." _

Neytiri chuckled and took his hand, as they made their way back to the inside of Kelutral. _"I'm sorry, Jake… it's mostly Tsu'tey, he's very protective of you… and he only does that because he feels that the attention might be bothering you." _

_ "Well, he's a good friend… it was starting to get a little irritating." _He laughed and pulled his mate up into his arms, spinning her in a circle, just because he could, before they joined the rest of the Clans for the final night of celebration.

* * *

It was a month after the clans had returned home and things were peaceful again, that what they had been waiting and alert for had finally happened… the return of the sky people.

* * *

AN: Sorry, it was late last night when I posted this chapter and it was a bit of a filler... I removed the part with Neytiri's death because I didn't feel that it was very good for obvious reasons (Too hasty as I was told - and I agree) so for anyone that was disappointed as I was be patient because I'll redo it and it'll actually be better. Sorry for the inconvenience


	15. Eywa Be With You

_**Chapter 15**_

AN: So if you read my previous chapter before I took out the death of Neytiri, I'm sorry for how bad it was, and this one will hopefully make up for it. Thank You.

* * *

The Na'vi scouting party snuck through the thick foliage towards the spot the scientists at Hell's Gate had confirmed the ship landed, to see exactly what was going on. The newcomers had set up camp at one of the abandoned RDA bases a good distance away from Hell's Gate.

When they had noticed the large ship in the planet's orbit the remaining scientists had tried to perform radio contact to verify their purpose, because they weren't expecting any new shipments of supplies for at least another year, but all they got was silence. When the ship entered the Pandoran atmosphere, it sailed right over the Hell's Gate base and into another part of the forest.

They knew that the arrival was coming soon, they'd been watching and waiting… but now that they were here it was just all too real. The peace that they'd come to feel grateful for was soon coming to an end, and it made them all uneasy… hadn't they gone through enough?

Jake Sully signaled to a few of the hunters to move around to the left side of the base to get a closer look at what they'd been unloading from the ship, but he could tell from the types of containers that they were going to be filled with weapons… the likes of which that made the ones the former SecOps members used look like play things. The men unloading the crates were using a new improved version of the RDA's AMPs, but the ones that Jake worried about were the bigger ones, the suits he knew weren't made for heavy lifting… but destruction.

These AMPs were at bit larger and bulkier than the former and outfitted with an array of weapons that would have made Wainfleet salivate. He knew that they weren't going to be able to just take the Omaticaya in to drive them off… the artillery was too much for them on their own, and they were definitely going to need careful planning to be able to survive another battle. They'd lost so many good warriors in the last fight with the sky people, and even then they would have lost if it hadn't been for the help of Eywa… which Jake doubted would happen again. She'd already sided with them once more than was normal, this time they knew that protecting their home would be up to them.

The scouts he sent over to get a closer look confirmed what he'd already guessed, that they were indeed weapons. The whole ship was filled with weapons, and a few personnel, which meant that the ship in orbit had to still be housing the rest of the sky people while those that had arrived already were just there to unload the ship and make sure that the base was fully operational. This base wasn't as large as Hell's Gate, but then its original purpose had been more military and not at all scientific… it was more than efficient for what they were going to use it for.

The Na'vi had assumed if the sky people returned it would be just to try to collect more Unobtainium… but it would seem that the rumors the scientists had heard were going to turn out to be true, they were sending an army… a hit squad to kill the Na'vi before the RDA tried to make their return and finish what they started.

_"This isn't looking so good." _Peyral whispered to Jake, eyeing the weapon crates. _"They've got more weapons than the last batch had… how can we fight this?" _

Jake could sense her unease, but he refused to just back down without a fight for his new home. _"We'll figure it out, we're going to have to do more scouting missions to gather as much information as we can before we strike… we'll have to gather the other clans again as well, which shouldn't be difficult. These guys look more military than mercenary, so they're going to be better trained than the last group too." _Jake said, looking over at Neytiri. _"I'm going to go and see if I can get a closer look, watch my back?" _

_ "Of course, Ma Jake." _She nodded, as he slunk his way around and closer to the perimeter fence.

Jake got as close as he could safely, readying an arrow in his bow, just in case. He was out of sight of the rest of the group, but he knew Neytiri was hidden somewhere above him out of sight, keeping close watch. He noticed just as the others had said that the entire ship was indeed filled with nothing but weapons and enough supplies to sustain a good amount of soldiers for at least 6 years. The more he saw the more uneasy he felt, if Roberts was in charge of these men as Tsu'tey anticipated, then this was going to be very dangerous… he could now understand why the Olo'eyktan had been concerned about any fear Jake could have had in his eyes, he was certain there was a bit of it present currently.

He heard the thunk as an arrow hit a target not too far from his left, and looking up he saw Neytiri on the branch of a nearby tree with her bow. The arrow she let loose had imbedded itself into a small drone that he assumed was doing a perimeter sweep and groaned. He'd forgotten to mention to the others that the little remote controlled robots couldn't harm them on their own… but by striking one down, like Neytiri just did, they'd no doubt just informed the base to their presence.

He signaled to her to move back to where they left the other hunters so they could make it back to the Kelutral safely, and they were halfway there when they heard the gunfire and war cries. Pushing himself faster, Jake burst through the trees and let an arrow of his own fly through the window of the nearest AMP, effectively killing its driver. Slashing his bow through the air he knocked another two foot soldiers against a tree with a sickening crack and kicked another in the chest.

Neytiri stayed up in a tree and provided cover for the surviving hunters. He sent another arrow sailing through the gut of another soldier when he heard his mate cry out and turned to watch her collapse on the ground a few feet from him, an AMPs knife sticking through her chest.

He'd been too caught up in protecting the other hunters that he hadn't noticed the sky person that had snuck up behind him until Neytiri had taken the blow, to save his life.

Lost in rage he grabbed the knife from another fallen AMP and jabbed it with all his might right into the cockpit of the enemy suit before he collapsed to his knees in front of his mate. He shakily raised his hand to cup her face and stared into her eyes in shock. Behind him, there was one final cry as the last sky person had been slain and the remaining hunters ran over to his side.

She'd saved his life, but at what cost… he could see the life draining from her as she lost more blood. He knew that they needed to move before more reinforcements came, but instinct told him that if he moved her she wouldn't make it back to Kelutral. Sensing his distress, Neytiri took a deep breath and said, _"Ma Jake, you need to get out of here before… more come." _She raised her hand to cup his cheek and ran her thumb under his eyes to wipe away the tear he hadn't noticed escaped.

_"I can't leave you… you're coming with us, you're going to be ok… we'll get you to Max, he'll be able to do something." _Jake stammered.

She just smiled sadly, _"I won't make it to Max… you know that as well as I do." _She sounded so sure, so steady… like she knew it was inevitable.

_"I'm not giving up, Neytiri… you're coming with us, and you'll be ok." _Even as he said the words though, he knew they were futile… just like it had been for Grace, but he was just too damn stubborn. He quickly called to the Toruk who sailed down into the clearing and carefully placed Neytiri on his back, wincing at the pained expression on her face.

Climbing onto his mount's back, he turned to the other hunters. _"Get back to Kelutral as fast as you can and tell the Olo'eyktan that we have an emergency. Also, tell Norm to get a hold of Max Patel at the Tawtute base to tell him what happened and let him know that we're on our way there. Eywa ngahu." _

There were a few shouts of consent as the riders mounted their Ikran and took off into the sky. One Pa'li rider placed a hunter that hadn't made it through the scuffle in front of him before riding off in the same direction as the others.

Jake looked down at Neytiri who was staring up in his eyes sadly and said, _"Just hang on; I'm going to do everything I can to save you." _And with one mighty flap of his wings the Toruk soared up into the sky and took off for Hell's Gate.

* * *

AN: "Eywa ngahu" Means "Goodbye, Eywa be with you."


	16. Emergency

_**Chapter 16**_

The scouting party arrived back and Kelutral shortly after nightfall, however it was with grim news and heavy hearts. The first person they sought out was Norm, like they were told. _"Norm, you are able to get a message quick to Maxpatel, yes?" _Mi'nate asked him.

Norm was confused for a moment, but as he scanned the group he noticed that neither Jake, Neytiri nor Peyral seemed to be standing there and said, _"Yes of course, it'll only take a moment… what's wrong?" _

Without pause she said, _"Jakesully said have you tell Maxpatel that he is on his way to the Tawtute base with Neytiri, it is an emergency." _She turned and ran off to the others without a second glance and Norm took that as his cue to rush off to the radio he'd set up at the schoolhouse for communication with the other scientists.

When he got there, he relieved the young Na'vi that was watching it for any incoming communications and punched in a code as he grabbed the headset. "Kelutral to Hell's Gate, come in Hell's Gate."

There was a bit of static before the voice of the woman, obviously in charge of the radio room that night, answered. "This is Hell's Gate, Kelutral what is your message."

"Jake Sully needs Max Patel to be ready for an emergency shortly; he's currently in route with Neytiri of the Omaticaya Clan. Can you make sure he gets that?"

"On it," she said, quickly punching in another code before announcing on the loud speaker at the compound, "Max Patel, this is radio… There is an emergency in route, prepare the Na'vi ward of the medical bay." She turned her attention back to Norm and asked, "Anything else, before I go help with the set up… I'm the only surgeon on duty just in case there's a need."

"No, that's it… thanks." Norm answered before flicking a switch and taking the headset off with a sigh. He got up and gave the radio control back over to the young man that had been watching it before and quickly rushed off to his mate, praying to Eywa that his friends would be alright.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

After Norm had rushed off, Mi'nate had rushed over to one of the clan's healers to have her look at their fallen comrade. The Pa'li rider had arrived with the limp form of Peyral shortly after the other hunters had, and had placed her on a woven mat used for the injured or ill.

The healer, Sin'awe, looked over the girl for what seemed like ages before nodding her head and speaking, _"Young Peyral has not sustained a life threatening injury, but she will need her rest… she has bruised a few ribs and broken her ankle. I will get a brace and wrap it to help along the healing process, but she shouldn't be flying around for a few weeks at least." _Mi'nate nodded and thanked the elderly woman, before the healer went to find a brace.

While they were having their fellow hunter looked over, they hadn't noticed the approach of the Olo'eyktan until he was behind them and spoke, _"What happened, where are Neytiri and Jakesully?" _

Startled, it took one of the other young hunters a moment before he was able to answer. _"We got to the Tawtute landing spot and confirmed that they have started setting up camp at an abandoned sky person base east of here. Jakesully went to get a closer look at their cargo, with Neytiri keeping watch, when they attacked. We held them off until they got back, but Peyral got kicked into a tree by one of their metal men. We fought them back, but in the end Neytiri was injured and the Toruk Makto has taken her to the Tawtute scientists for help." _His report was short and to the point which Tsu'tey appreciated, because he didn't know how much more he could listen to after word of Neytiri being injured.

_"You did well, we will need to discuss this further, but not until after you've rested. I will fly to the Tawtute base and get firsthand news on Neytiri's condition and relay the message. Please inform the Tsahìk of my departure and ask Norm and Ninat if they can watch after Zuleika and Ate'tukan while their parents are away." _He said to Mi'nate, who rushed off to inform Mo'at. The other hunters said quick prayers to Eywa before heading back to their respective families or mates to rest.

Calling to his Ikran, Tsu'tey slid onto his back and made Tsaheylu before instructing him to fly to Hell's Gate, which didn't make the Ikran too happy… he got feelings the feelings of dislike and disdain the entire way there.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Max was waiting with a large gurney outside the medical compound when he spotted the Toruk on the horizon, and closing in fast. The Na'vi had capable healers, so he knew this was a dire emergency if Jake's only resort was to bring his mate back to the base. Jake landed the beast as close as he could to Max before sliding off of his back and pulling Neytiri gently into his arms. Max noted that she was breathing, barely, and helped him ease her onto the gurney before taking a look at the situation… which wasn't very good. She had several scrapes and bruises, but those would only lead to soreness, the thing that was daunting was the large broken off piece of metal sticking out of her chest, just under her right shoulder. Max knew this kind of weapon to be that of an AMP, which told them that they'd been right about the recent craft that descended not being friendly.

He looked to Jake, "What happened?"

"It was an AMP… the bastard came up behind me while I was fighting another off of Mi'nate, and Neytiri jumped in front of the blade to save my life…" He said.

Max nodded and rushed the gurney as fast as he could into the area of the base where the air wasn't filtered so they could help with any of the Na'vi emergencies. "I'm going to have to take her into surgery to repair any damages that the blade caused if I can, I have Melinda on duty… so we'll have the best. But Jake…" he shook his head sadly, "It's not looking too good, the blade is just right that it might have struck something vital. If that's the case then removing the blade could be just as deadly as leaving it in, but we'll do the best we can. I'm sorry that this happened." And with that he shut the white double doors of the surgery bay, leaving Jake alone, to pace and wait for news. He silently apologized for putting his brother through something like this when he'd had his accident in the Marines… the waiting was horrible.

After what felt like hours, but in reality was only about one hour, one of the other scientists led Tsu'tey into the waiting area as well. When the Olo'eyktan saw Jake, he walked over and placed a hand on the other warriors shoulder, alerting him to his presence. Jake looked up at him, sadly. _"She's in surgery... the doctors haven't given me any news yet." _He said.

_"I am sorry Jake, but she is strong… she will make it through this. She has to..." _The slightly larger male said, wrapping an arm around Jake's shoulder.

Leaning into the friendly touch, he took a deep breath. "_You're right… she's strong, she would never let a Vrrtep take her from me or our children.. She will… be fine." _With that, he closed his eyes, letting the wariness take over.

Tsu'tey sighed, and looked over at the large white doors, taking up the other warrior's waiting game for news… good or bad.


End file.
